A New Chapter
by fearXtheXstorm
Summary: A marriage law has been set in England's wizarding world, and it's tough for Hermione, who is paired with Fred. After starting out on the wrong foot, things start looking up. Until a few people carry out a few mistakes.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hey y'all, I almost forgot to put this in the first time. This is a story I've been bitting about for some time. I have a rough draft written, but I may and/or may not use it, so just bare with me. And the timing of updates will probably be a little strange. I've been told that i word sentences strangely sometimes, as well, so I apologize for any sentences that are confusing. Just tell me, I'll try to fix it. So yeah, here you go.**

**Disclaimer: I doesn't own Harry Potter, I sorry if you thought so.**

Hermione's sleep was interrupted with Mrs. Weasley calling up the stairs for everyone to wake up, and come to breakfast. Hermione rolled off the bed, and glanced at the clock. Ten o'clock. _Must be important_ she thought as she looked at herself in the mirror. She dragged a brush through her hair, and quickly braided it, then went to wake Ginny. Deciding that she would probably not get to sleep again until later tonight, she pulled on a pair of jean Capri's, and then put on Charlie's old Quidditch jersey, that she had taken to wearing on Saturdays if she had nowhere to be.

She missed Charlie, as they had grown extremely close after the war, and considered him one of her closest friends. She walked slowly down the stairs, with Ginny bouncing at her heels, obviously no longer tired at the prospect of food. They sat down at the table, and waited as Mrs. Weasley levitated the food onto it. Once Ron finally sat beside Harry, she allowed them all to eat. As they ate, they chatted, or just listened if they were too tired.

"Nice shirt, Mione." Fred and George said to her at the same time, as they did every time she wore it. She smiled. "Thanks, I got it from a friend." She answered, as always. After they finished eating, Mrs. Weasley told them to wait for a moment, then disappeared into the kitchen. Coming back in, she handed around a letter to everyone, and held another stack. Hermione read her letter.

_Because of the dwindling population of the wizarding world thanks to the ending of the war, the Ministry of Magic has now set a new law. If you are between the ages of sixteen and thirty-four, you have been matched with someone who the Ministry thinks you will be compatible with. You must marry within the next four months, and must have one child before your first anniversary. After your first child, you must have three more within the next seven years. After you and your partner have at least four magical children, you may have the choice to divorce. There will be no exceptions other than if you are already engaged or married. Every pair that is matched by the Ministry is to be engaged within two weeks after getting your match. You may not change who you are to marry. Breaking this law will result in being thrown into Azkaban, and being removed of all powers._

Hermione looked up. "Molly, they can't force us to marry, can they?" she said. Mrs. Weasley was also holding a letter. "Yes, dear, they can, I'm afraid." She replied. "I have the papers that say who you are to marry here, hold on." Mrs. Weasley said, sending each one of them a second piece of paper. Harry opened his first, then sighed in relief. "Ginny, I don't suppose you would mind being forced to marry me, now would you?" he said, and Ginny grinned.

They had been dating since the war, and Hermione knew Harry had been planning to ask her to marry her anyways. "Is that what you call a proposal?" Ginny asked, before kissing him. He shook his head. "No, I guess not." He looked as if he was about to say more, before Fred got up quickly, knocking his chair over in the process, and slamming the door as he stormed out. George looked after him. "I don't think he liked his match too well. But I got Katie, if it matters." Mrs. Weasley smiled. "Good, good, I was hoping that you would be kept together." She said, gesturing to Harry and Ginny, then to George.

Ron nudged Hermione. "You or me?" he said, but she had already rolled her eyes and opened her letter. She read the name, and the paper dropped from her hands, and she paled noticeably. Ginny reached over and picked it up. "Well, who is it?" George asked, stretching as he stood up. Ginny shook her head. "It'll be okay Hermione." she said, giving her best friend a hug. Hermione looked down at her lap, and nodded. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but then another door slammed, Fred came barging back in, looking extremely frustrated.

Hermione squeaked (Even Fred, the third calmest of the Weasley clan could get angry, and now seemed like one of those times to Hermione) and she dashed out of the room, tears beginning to spill down her cheeks as she practically flew to her room. Ginny sighed. "Fred, that was dumb." She scolded before following Hermione. The others all looked at Fred. "So? Is anyone gonna say who Hermione's with?" asked George, and Fred nodded. "Me."


	2. Chapter 2

Ginny stood at her door, knocking slightly.  
"Hermione, please let me in, I'm sure he wasn't mad at you." She said through  
the door. Hermione had locked the door magically, and Ginny was worried. She  
finally gave up, and went downstairs. As she descended, she thought.

_Hmm, I think I should floo-call Charlie. Hermione seems extremely comfortable around him, much more lax. I'm positive he'll make her feel better. And, of course, if Fred needs beating up, Charlie's  
going to want to do it._ Ginny got downstairs, and smiled at Mrs. Weasley. "Mum,  
I'm going to floo call Charlie. He'll make Hermione feel better, because she is  
currently hiding in her room, thanks to my brother the meathead." Ginny said as  
she knelt in front of the fireplace.

"I resent that!" Fred cried as she dropped  
in floo powder. Ginny rolled her eyes as she stepped through. After several  
minutes, she reappeared completely, with a promise from Charlie that he would  
be there ASAP. Somewhat satisfied at how she was handling the situation, she  
went to sit with Harry, Ron (who was looking extremely pissed) and Luna (who  
was Ron's fiancée) in the living room.

* * *

Charlie had just walked through the door when Fred and Ginny started their fight. "No,  
Frederick, you may not go see her!" Ginny, who was standing at the bottom of  
the stairs and blocking Fred from going up, yelled. "She's my fiancée!" Fred  
retaliated. Ginny was about to say something else when she noticed Charlie.

Charlie grinned. "I know I'm probably intruding on something extremely  
important here, but I'm going to go see if I can cheer poor Hermione up." he  
said, and Ginny smiled at him, letting him up the stairs, then continuing her  
fight with Fred. Charlie took the steps two at a time to his old room that had  
become Hermione's after the war, as he rarely visited, and when he did, he took  
Bill's old room, because it was bigger. He listened through the door. He could  
hear Hermione sniffing every few moments, and she seemed to be  
hyperventilating. He knocked on the door. "Hermione, it's Charlie, can I come  
in?"

* * *

"Hermione, it's Charlie, can I come in?" said the voice on the other side of the door. Hermione flicked her wand slightly, and the door unlocked. Charlie stepped in, shut the door behind him, and walked over to her. She was sitting on the floor, leaning against her bed. Charlie smiled, and sat beside her. "Now," he started, "I know you're upset and all, Mione, but what are you doing on the floor?" She gave him a weak smile. "I started on the bed, but I slid off after hearing a knock on my door about a minute after I got in here."

He scrunched his nose. "Are us Weasley's that terrifying?" he asked, and she nodded. "Fred is. The look he had on his face. He looked as if he wanted to murder me. I'm ruining his life." She said, her smile fading, and a tear slipping down her cheek. Charlie shook his head. "No, Hermione, you're not. If anything, he's ruining yours. And of course Fred was mad, he hates being told what to do." She glanced at him, smiling. "Maybe so." Was all she could force out.

Charlie pulled something out of his pocket. "This is yours, right?" he said, holding out an iPod. She nodded, grinning, and snatched it from him. "I've been looking for this! Where'd you find it?" she said excitedly, unraveling the earbuds. He grinned. "You left it in the pocket of my jacket." She smacked herself in the forehead. "Duh! Why didn't I think of that?" she said, putting one of the earbuds in, and turning it on. It began playing a song, and she smiled happily. She began bobbing her head back and forth to her music. "You wanna go back downstairs?" Charlie asked, and she nodded.

"Do I have to talk to Fred?" she asked, and he shook his head. She pondered it. "Do I have to put my iPod away?" she asked, and he again shook his head, so she stood up, smiling even bigger, and she followed Charlie out, putting her other earbud in. She followed him down the stairs, and bounced over to the fire, where Ginny was reading a magazine. Ginny shot him a look of thanks, before starting a conversation with the bookworm, who had re-taken one earbud out so she could talk. They stayed like that for a few hours, just chatting amongst themselves.

The sun had just set, and a grand summer storm just started, when Charlie walked into the kitchen, and sat on the table. "Mum, I think I'll stay here for a few days. The Reserve has been slow lately, and I've been given leave. Anyways, I think Hermione will need more than just Ginny." He said, and Mrs. Weasley nodded. "That's fine, Charlie." He grinned and was about to ask if there was any food left from dinner when the door slammed open. Fred, who had obviously left, strode in, yelling at George, who was right behind him. "How can you say everything is going to be fine, George? You get to stay with Katie, I have to break up with Alicia because of this stupid thing! This is an awful predicament, nothing good can come out of it! Just look at who I have to marry!" George was about to say something, when they heard a sniffle.

But Fred kept going. "I'm not marrying the little bookworm. She's too smart and conceited for her own good. She thinks she's perfect, and I'm not marrying a boring piece of shit like her." Fred heard a gasp, and spun on his heels. Hermione stood in the doorway, with Ginny right behind her. "I'm sorry then," Hermione said quietly, "I'll just leave you to it." Charlie saw a few tears run down her cheeks before she darted out past both of the twins and then out the door, into the cool night.

"Good going, Fred." Charlie said coldly, before running out after her.


	3. Chapter 3

"Hermione!" he called, "You need to come back! He didn't mean that!" Charlie paused, then starting running again. "Actually, he probably did, but running away isn't going to make him change his mind! Mione!" he called. Charlie was getting soaked from the rain, and the thunder and lightning was extreme, but he wasn't going to stop. "Hermione!" he called again, "You're going to get hurt! Please come back!" he was yelling himself hoarse, but he didn't care. "Mione!" he was about to go a little farther into the woods, when he heard a voice. "Charlie?" a small voice said, and he spun on his heels.

He only just caught a glimpse of Hermione before she stepped back, and fell, disappearing out of sight down the steep hill she had managed to find. "Hermione!" he called, running forward. He looked for her in the little light coming from the lightning, and finally spotted her body. She was laying unconscious by the small lake the Weasley's had on their property.

_Dammit_ Charlie thought, before hopping over the cliff-like edge, and using anything in within his power to safely land beside her. She was covered in mud, and was soaked far worse than Charlie, and he could just barely see tear-stains on her cheeks. Charlie thought she looked a little bit like she was a picture, not real-life, but he didn't dwell on the thought. He swung his head around, hoping to find an easy way out of the indention where the lake stayed.

The summer had been lack-rain, and so the lake was pretty shallow, but with every minute the storm continued, the lake seemed to rise. It was already hitting Hermione's bare feet. Charlie, not seeing any better way, lifted Hermione up bridal style, and stood up. He slowly climbed the steep side, trying desperately not to fall in the slick mud. When he made it up out of the indention, he adjusted Hermione a little in his arms, hoping he wouldn't drop her. They were both soaked through, Hermione more so than him, and it made gripping anything like trying to hold onto a stick of butter when your hands are soapy. Next to near impossible.

In the distance, he could see the light of the Burrow kitchen through the dense trees and rain torrents. He headed in that direction, and was careful not to trip over something or run into anything. It took him almost twice as long to get back to the Burrow as it did to find Hermione, but he made it without getting hurt, or harming Hermione. He walked into the kitchen, and shook his rain-drenched hair out of his eyes. "Mum!" he called out, even though he didn't need to, she was still in the kitchen. His cheeks tainted a light red when he noticed her.

"Oh, sorry, I didn't see you. Mum, come see Hermione." He said, and Mrs. Weasley nodded. "Go lay her in the living room, I'll be there in just a moment, Charlie." She said, drying her hands. He nodded, and slipped into the living room. He settled Hermione carefully onto the couch. Now that he was in the light, and had a better view of her, he noticed that Hermione's knees, and forearms, were scraped up pretty badly from what should've been the water-covered lake bottom, but was just mud and pebbles. He shook his hair out of his eyes again as Mrs. Weasley came in. She tutted at the sight of Hermione. It reminded Charlie of Madame Pomfrey.

Mrs. Weasley didn't wait long, but came to a conclusion in a few minutes. "Ennervate." She said, pointing her wand at Hermione's chest. Hermione coughed, and blinked into consciousness. Mrs. Weasley bustled back into the kitchen, but returned with a vial, and two glasses. She evenly poured the potion between the two glasses, then handed one to both Hermione and Charlie. "Drink up, you'll feel better." she said. Hermione sat up and slowly sipped hers down, shivering a little.

Charlie, not thinking, downed his in one gulp. His throat burned, though when he looked back on it, he wasn't sure what he was expecting. But the chill that had set in once he stopped moving around outside. Hermione looked better as well, she stopped shivering, at least. "What was that, Mum?" he asked, and Mrs. Weasley smiled as she began performing healing charms on Hermione's arms. "Pepper-Up potion. You both looked like walking dead." She quickly finished her healing charms, and stood up. "There you are Hermione." Hermione smiled at her.

"Mrs. Weasley, where's Fred? I have a piece of my mind I plan on giving him." Mrs. Weasley frowned. "I sent him to his room. He's in big trouble. I was just waiting for you to get back to decide how to punish him. I'm sorry about his behavior, Hermione." Hermione stood up from the couch. "It is not your fault. Now, if you excuse me, I have to go get cleaned and dried off, then I have a ginger-headed twin to deal with. I will see you guys tomorrow morning."

She said, before walking slowly up the stairs, her soaked clothes dripping, making the wooden stairs slippery. Charlie stood up quickly, and helped her up the stairs, keeping her steady. She smiled at him, before turning into his room. He grinned, and went up another set of stairs to his room. He dried off, and changed out of his wet clothes, and was laying in bed, when he heard some crashing coming from several floors up.


	4. Chapter 4

Hermione took a quick shower, and changed into some black skinny jeans and a black leather jacket over a white t-shirt, then took a deep breath. She walked steadily up the stairs, and stopped at the door belonging to Fred and George's room. She rapped on it three times, and waited.

* * *

Fred heard the knock on his door, and not really caring who saw him in just some Muggle cargos, swung himself off the bed, and walked over to the door. He opened it, and he caught not one glimpse of who knocked before a spell shot him backwards, flinging him into the wall. "The hell was that?" he asked, somewhat winded from impact.

"Get up!" growled someone from the doorway, lightning flashing and lighting up the room. He stood up, using the wall as a little bit of leverage, and reached for his wand from his pocket. It wasn't there. He swung his head around, his eyes sweeping the ground near where he fell. "Looking for this?" said the person sweetly. He looked up.

Hermione was there, looking incredibly sexy, and devious, in all black, leaning against the door frame, her hair damp, her skin a little pale, and a devious smirk playing across her lips. A smirk to rival both his and Draco Malfoy's. His wand was being twirled around her fingers like a baton. She had an air about her that made her seem very confident, and mysterious.

He kept strong front, or what he hoped what was a strong front, but he could feel some fear course through him. Hermione Granger was known as the Gryffindor Princess, the brains behind Harry Potter, and the brightest witch of her age. It was very unlikely he could out-duel her, even if he had all the advantages. But he didn't have his wand, he had no chance.

"H-Hermione," he stuttered, backing away from the center of the room a little, fear flashing in his eyes, "Um, l-let's not get hasty here." He said, as she raised her wand. With a flick of her wrist, a spell shot at him. As the spell hit, he could feel the blood rush to his head painfully quickly, and it took him a few moments to realize he was hanging upside down from his ankles. Just when he thought he would pass out, the spell released him, and he shot towards the ground.

He squeezed his eyes shut, and braced himself for the collision, but it never came. He opened one eye, and found himself laying on his back. His room was completely wrecked. The two beds were shoved up near the wall, and the two bedside tables knocked over. The curtain rod and curtain that had hung over the window had clattered to the floor. Several boxes of things were knocked over, some open, with different Weasley's Wizard's Wheezes spilling out.

Fred heard –well, more felt- the thunk of something. He looked around to see Hermione coming closer. She was leaning over him, and had brought out a needle. A sewing needle, yes, but a needle nonetheless. Fred paled a little bit.

In the Weasley family, fears were spread out, and passed on. For example, Bill and Ginny and George were all afraid of kappas, as was their late Uncle Fabian. Fear of spiders occurred once in a generation, so Ron, their father, and their Aunt Muriel all had it. When it came to Charlie and Fred, they were both desperately afraid of needles. Hermione seemed to know that, as her smirk stayed steady. _Charlie must've told her. that bastard! _ He thought.

She knelt by his right hand, and used a sticking spell to stick it to the floor, palm up. Slowly, she pressed the tip of the needle against the tip of his index finger. He waited, his breathing irregular and showing his fear, for penetration. Before it was deep enough to pierce the skin, the needle withdrew. Fred seemed to calm a little, until the needle pressed to his middle finger. He tried desperately to turn his head away, or to close his eyes, but was unable. He watched as the needle went almost deep enough to penetrate, and again, the needle left. It happened with the rest of his fingers, almost penetrating, but not exactly, and she continued, covering the tips of his fingers in little holes.

All the while, he pleaded with her to stop. Not only was this painful, it was jarring his sense of peace. The suspension of expected to bleed, and then not. And she was so steady, and slow, as if to make the pain worse. She shifted on the floor beside his hand, and repositioned the needle from his fingertips. Instead, it hovered above his palm. The tip of the needle pressed into the sensitive spot just off the center. She pressed it deeper this time, deeper than before, and he thrashed against his bindings. "Hermione, please stop." He pleaded, and the needle froze. "Hermione, please, please stop it." he said again, and she pulled away, sliding the needle out of his skin.

He fought the urge to throw up as the needle slid out with ease. She waved her wand, and all the spells she had him under disappeared. She stood up, and tossed his wand onto his bed. It bounced off, and clattered to the floor between the bed and the wall. She walked to the door, and before she shut it behind her, she waved her wand again. Little yellow birds shot out of it, and flew towards him. He hurried to shield himself from the attacking projectiles, and Hermione slipped out.

"That's what you get." Hermione whispered to the room.


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey y'all! Now, this chapter is probably one of the more important ones, because of the desriptions in it of Hermione's outfit. Anytime i mention her clothing, I need you guys (the readers) to kind of picture her. It will definitely help the story play out. I'm hoping that you guys see something sort of along the lines of what i saw when typing it. For this particular chapter, I was going for sexy. Even if it isn't really, just pretend it is. Now, one more thing. I do like reading reveiws, but I'm not going to particularly beg for them. I don't need them to keep the story going, though i do appreciate feedback. If you guys have anything to say, please do reveiw, because I do read them. Ideas, criticism, corrections, anything. Thanks to anyone who already has reveiwed. Now! Now, you can go read the chapter if you haven't already started. Introducing: Chapter 5**

Hermione woke up the next morning, feeling much better. It was early, according to her watch, only 6:39. She smirked to herself. It wasn't likely any of the Weasley kin would be up yet, nor Harry. She swung herself out of bed, and after going to the bathroom and brushing her teeth, she got dressed. She pulled on some ripped dark skinny jeans, and slid into a black tank top that was trimmed with lace, the straps of her red bra sitting beside the black lace straps of the tank top.

She fixed a little bit of lip gloss, and some black eye shadow, creating a smokey-eye affect. She was extremely grateful for Ginny teaching her how to look like a woman, not a school girl. She pulled her hair into a wavy ponytail, with small locks hanging out around her face, framing it, and zipped up black leather high heeled boots over the skinny jeans and black socks.

She checked herself in the mirror, and decided she looked fine for this morning's task. She smirked again, and slipped out of her room. She snuck up the stairs, her boots making no noise. When she got to Fred's room, she carefully opened the door, to find him asleep on his bed, curled up in a ball, as if to protect himself. She didn't hesitate, but waved her wand, and levitated him into the air, not waking him. She levitated him out of the room, and downstairs.

Hermione received curious looks from Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, but she just shook her head, her eyes dancing in mischief, her smirk showing glee. 'Revenge' she mouthed to them, and they nodded, and she slipped out of the house. Hermione kept Fred high in the air, until she got to the edge of the lake. The storm from the night before had risen the water, and it was lapping not feet away from her on level ground.

She directed Fred over the middle of the chilly lake, and let the levitating spell vanish. He crashed into the water, and came up spluttering. He wiped the cool water out of his eyes, and looked around, looking for his attacker. When he noticed Hermione, his eyes almost popped out of his head.

* * *

_Damn, that is one sexy bird._ He thought as he swam back to the shore, and trudged out beside her. She carried that smirk again. _Damn, where did she learn to smirk like that?_ He thought, but tried to play it cool. "Erm, Hermione, hey. You don't happen to know who dumped me into the lake, do you?" he asked, carrying out his voice with a light, teasing tone. He hoped. She nodded, her eyes dancing in mischief. He looked at her. "Yes, well who was it?" he asked, trying hard to convince himself she hadn't done it.

Her eyes almost laughed as she answered, "Me, of course. Who else had the drive?" he tried to keep his breathing even. "What for? I thought your revenge played out last night." he asked. She shrugged, her face hardening. "You called me a boring piece of shit, Fred. Don't you remember?" he gulped, and nodded. "So, are we even?" he asked, praying to Merlin she said yes. She shrugged again.

"I may seem boring at first, Fred, but you are, and always will be, a big-headed, arrogant, bastard." She said, stepping closer on her tiptoes to stare him directly in the eyes, just inches from his face. "I am nowhere near finished straightening you out." She said, poking him in the chest.

He didn't know where it came from, what pushed him to do it, but he closed the distance between them, and locked their lips into a kiss. It took her by surprise, but she recovered quickly, pushing him away. "What the hell is wrong with you?" she exclaimed, jamming a fist into his stomach. He immediately covered his stomach, not bothering to think about his answer.

"I'm bloody in love with you, that's what's wrong with me!" he retorted, before his hand bolted from his stomach to cover his mouth. Hermione's face seemed to soften for a second, before she sneered at him. "Yeah, well let's see how that works out." She said, waving her wand, and before he had time to register, the little yellow birds were pecking at him. "You better hope to Merlin that I don't make them needles next time." She said, before turning on her heel, and walking back to the house.

* * *

Hermione smiled when she got back inside. "Molly," she said, walking into the kitchen. Mrs. Weasley looked at her, before returning to her cooking. "Yes, Hermione dear?" Hermione leaned against the wall. "Do you have any limits for me while I carry out my revenge a little?" Mrs. Weasley thought for a moment, then shook her head. "As long as it isn't illegal, and it doesn't change Fred too much. I trust you'll know when to stop." Hermione grinned. "Thank you. I promise I won't do anything illegal, and the only thing I'll permanently hurt is his ego." Mrs. Weasley nodded, then said, "Hermione, go wake the others. We have weddings to plan today." Hermione nodded, and walked out of the kitchen, sashaying her hips as she went, noticing Fred coming in.

* * *

Fred took in a ragged breath, trying to regain his composure after the birds disappeared. But then he noticed Hermione swing her hips in a way that had to be illegal in several countries. Especially in that outfit. He gulped, his soaked Muggle cargos tightening. "Mum, I'm going to go change." He said, and ran up to his room. He dried off, and quickly changed into clean clothes. Then he sat on his bed, trying to think all of this out.


	6. Chapter 6

Fred put his head in his heads, and massaged his forehead as he thought. He didn't plan on saying anything the night before –Had it only been one night? It felt like forever-, when he called her a boring piece of shit. He hadn't realized how mad he was, until he was making up lies to his own twin. Fred didn't think Hermione was a boring piece of shit. He thought she could be boring, yes. And she could act like a piece of shit if she was ticked off, yes. But he didn't always think it.

Other than the fact that he had to get married, and break up with Alicia –Which he already did- he kind of liked this marriage law. He had a small crush on Hermione, yes. But it was tiny. The size of a flea. He had overcome it years ago. But it did help a little now. And now he had managed to piss her off. At least he knew she could hold her own.

His thoughts went back to the night before. Her torturous revenge. As painful, and mind-quaking as it was, he felt he deserved it. He had been a prat, a git, an arse, and a whole bunch of other things. He just hoped that it would never get worse than that. He figured that Hermione would think of ways to make it much worse, and felt a little thankful she hadn't travelled anywhere else.

She could've easily attacked other parts of his body than his hand. She could've drawn it out much longer, ignoring his pleas. As much as he hated to admit it, he had been close to tears last night. But still, he felt he deserved it. He and Hermione had never been close, and he didn't always treat her so kindly. In fact, until after the war, he always was a git to her, and on many occasions, was still.

He didn't know why. Probably that thing that guys do, get extremely mean to a girl because they liked her. Yeah, that made sense. At that moment, Fred decided two things. One, he deserved whatever she shot his way. And two, he had better make this better quick, because once they were married, there was no escaping her. Fred tried to think of a way to make it up to her. Maybe a big wedding. Or a puppy. Girls like puppies, don't they?

He was facepalming himself, and was about to go down to breakfast, when he heard a knock on the door. "Come in." he said, quickly regaining his jokester tone. Charlie slipped in, and sat at the foot of the bed. "You really hurt Hermione, you know. The emotions that showed on her face last night; I can't imagine that she'll ever be able to actually forgive you. Stand to be in the same room with you? Yes. But forgive you? I highly doubt it." Fred felt all his confidence rush to his feet.

* * *

"But forgive you? I highly doubt it." Charlie finished, and watched as all the color in Fred's cheeks disappeared. Charlie reached over, and put a hand on his shoulder to steady him. "Fred, what are you gonna do?" he asked. Fred shrugged. After seeming to find his voice, he said, "I have no idea. Everything I said about her to George, I think it was a lie. I don't remember whether er not I meant it."

Charlie nodded. "I'm not going to help you, sorry. This isn't where I interfere. Anyways, you two are to be married whether you guys like it or not. That may help. Maybe. Hermione sent me up here to come get you for breakfast. C'mon." he said, and Fred stood up. Shaking his upper body a little, he turned back into his prankster self. Charlie just rolled his eyes. He turned towards the door, with Fred on his heels. "Oh, wait," Charlie said, turning back around, making Fred stop. Charlie drew a fist back, and punched his brother in the stomach. "That's a warning." Charlie said, and then walked out. Fred, holding his stomach, watched his brother, before continuing out of the room.

* * *

Mrs. Weasley looked around the table. Everyone had finished eating, and Mrs. Weasley had got out a parchment and quill, and made a chart, putting each couples' names in the top slots. "Alright times, anyone? Any ideas?" George nodded. "Katie wants to be married right before the deadline. Don't know why." Mrs. Weasley nodded, and scribbled something on her parchment. Ginny smiled. "Two weeks Mum, me and Harry want a Gryffindor wedding. Can we do it?" she asked, and Harry beamed at her as Mrs. Weasley nodded vigorously.

Ron sighed. "Two weeks before George, Mum." He said, glancing at Luna, who was a spacey as usual. Everyone turned expectantly to Fred and Hermione. Hermione was purposely looking anywhere but Fred, whose eyes only lay on her. Hermione was graceful in the matter though. "Mrs. Weasley, I'll tell you what I've thought on, though Fred's opinions may matter as well. I was thinking dark purple colors, here, two weeks after Ginny's wedding. I already have my dress, and I know the style for bridesmaids that should work. I was thinking of purple narcissuses." She nodded, to punctuate her choices, and Mrs. Weasley turned to Fred. He thought for a moment.

"That's fine with me, Mum. All of it. And we can have Muggle tuxes for the groomsmen." Mrs. Weasley nodded, and quickly scribbled onto her parchment. "Guests?" she asked, and Hermione smiled kindly. "I have two people I'd like to invite that you guys don't know. Wizards, so we won't have to worry about Muggles. Other than that, it's up to Fred." She thought for a moment, "Though the Order members, and some of Dumbledore's Army is a good place to start." She hinted, and Fred nodded. "Yeah, Mum. The Order and some Dumbledore's Army. I'll take care of the DA invites. And I suppose some of the family members should attend. You can deal with that."

Fred finished, not taking his eyes from Hermione, who pretended to act oblivious as she excused herself to the bathroom, saying she'll be right back. Fred stared after her, and she may have felt his eyes, because she added a little bit of a sexy swing in her walk. He sighed, a small smile crossing his face. George laughed, and elbowed his twin, bringing Fred back to the present. Fred blushed a little at the curious stares being drawn to him. "You lied, Fred!" Ginny cried, as Ron and Luna were pulled aside to talk weddings by Mrs. Weasley. He blushed some more, but straightened himself in his seat, choosing not to catch anyone's gazes. Ginny grinned.

"You do fancy her. Well, I would like to see how you're going to fix this." She said, and Fred shrugged. "Dunno. I'll think of something." He said in tone that said, plainly, 'DROP IT!'. Ginny complied, but with a look that said that this conversation wasn't over. Ron and Luna returned, but Mrs. Weasley disappeared to begin on what she had already, deciding to get the rest of the information later.

When Hermione came back in, she walked confidently, and slid into a vacant seat next to Ginny. "Gin, I think me and you should have a slumber party. Invite your brothers' fiancés over for old times' sake?" she said in a tone that was dripping in sexy, and chill. Fred shivered a little, while George raised both eyebrows, obviously impressed. "Hmm, my my, you have certainly grown up. Don't you think so, Forge? Don't you think our little bookworm has grown into a sexy little bird? I'm slightly jealous of whoever will get to shag her." he said coyly, catching everyone's attention.

They knew that his last sentence was un-true, he was faithful to Katie, but Fred's insides squirmed a little, and slight anger surged through him, all the while blushing even worse than before. Hermione just rolled her eyes. "George, whoever I end up shagging it sure as hell isn't going to be you." He seemed taken aback by her calm and quick retort. Ginny, Harry, and Ron howled with laughter at his look of surprise. Fred caught some of Hermione's confidence, it seemed, and he smirked. "Of course you won't, Hermione. You'll be shagging someone much better looking." She raised an eyebrow.

"Surely you don't mean yourself?" she asked, a disbelieving tone to her voice. Ron slid down in his seat laughing, and the others just carried out their laughter from before. Hermione smirked at Fred, before getting up, and following Ginny up to her room to plan the slumber party.

**Hey y'all! Okay, I'm going to try to put at least one author's note (which will always be in bold print) in each chapter. I got, like, five reveiws from the last chapter, and honestly, I loved reading them. They were all very encouraging, so thank you for that. I've kind of just realised that the time in the story is not as long as it feels it should be, so I'll try and do better with that. Oh! And I'm changing my username to fearXtheXstorm. Well, I suppose that's all for the moment. I'll update again soon. -Storm**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey y'all! Okay, so i said i was going to try and note in every chapter. I have nothing to say except for maybe that if you're kind of confused at the end of this chapter thats okay because i did kind of split the story in a strange way. BUT, BUT, i am going to post the next chapter tomorrow. if i remember. So dont worry. If you are extremely confused, like so confused, you cant think about it without getting a headache, do tell me, and I'll try not to do that in the future. Okay, now that i think about it, one more thing. When i post chapter nine, i'll post chapter ten not to long after, because of how short chapter ten is going to be. It will probably be the absolute shortest chapter at less than four-hundred words, including an authors note. So, yeah. Introducing: Chapter 7! **

No one really saw Hermione or Ginny the rest of the day. Harry claims he spotted them kneeling in front of the floo, their rumps in the air, heads in the flame. Mrs. Weasley said they told her their plans, and she agreed. At around ten-thirty that night, Luna, Katie, Alicia, and Angelina appeared at the Burrow, and were led upstairs to Ginny's room. Fred tensed up when he saw Alicia. Their break had been clean, understanding, but left an icy sense of air between them. He really hoped that whatever was said in that room was kid-friendly.

* * *

"That bastard!" Alicia exclaimed, after hearing what had happened in the past few days with Hermione and Fred. "I'm so sorry, Hermione. I should've knocked him into place before send him to you." She apologized. Hermione shrugged. "It's fine. I'm having fun with my revenge."

Even though they had placed imperturable charms on the door, and muffliato, and some other clever spells Hermione had come across, the six girls leaned in closer. Hermione grinned. "My first bout of revenge was torturous to him. I'm not going into too many details, but I'll tell you right now that it involved sewing needles, and it got him pleading for me to stop." She said, and the other girls' mouths dropped open.

"Pleading? You're serious, he was pleading?" Alicia spit out, and Hermione nodded. "Constantly, he was going, 'Hermione, please stop, please stop it. Hermione, please don't.' If that's not pleading, then I don't know what is." Ginny looked at her friend in amazement. "How did you get him pleading? Did you, like, seriously injure an important part to the boy's anatomy?" she asked, and Hermione shook her head.

"I had planned on maybe going there if I felt like torturing him longer, but I had him pleading when I started, with his hand." Ginny nodded. "That would explain the tiny holes in his right fingertips. And now that I've said that, you have to tell us what you did." Hermione nodded, and lay on her stomach, and got comfortable. "Well, after knocking him into the wall, almost making him pass out, and almost letting him crash into the floor, I took out the needle. I used a sticking charm to keep his hand stretched out like this." She lay her hand down, mimicking how she trapped Fred's hand last night, then continued.

"And I slowly let the needle press his skin, but didn't let it penetrate far enough to draw blood. I made several marks on each finger, going deep enough to hurt, but not draw blood. He begged me to stop most of the time. Then I moved to this spot on his palm." She pointed it out, then continued again. "I hadn't pressed down near as far as the fingertips, when he started thrashing as best he could against the bindings I had him under." Her face softened a little bit as she told the next part. "'Hermione', he said, 'Hermione please, please stop. Please don't. Please, Hermione.' Because of another charm I had found, he was unable to move his head away, or shut his eyes. His gaze was directed towards where I was working. Somehow, he had managed to turned enough that he was looking right at me. I couldn't find it in my heart to push any farther."

Ginny, who was extremely impressed, reached over, and rubbed Hermione's shoulder. "That was perfect revenge. Although I expected more." She said. Hermione sat up, nodding, her face taking on a comical expression. "Why do you think I dropped him in the lake?" she asked, and the group of girls laughed. When they calmed down some, Hermione sighed.

"I'm finishing off my wonderful revenge by taking on different looks until he has to propose. You know, today, how I looked sexy? I'm trying anything to make him mental for me, but almost completely ignoring him, unless to use a comeback. I may try some other things, but for now, I want to make it as though I'm not wasting any energy." The others' faces lit up in excitement. Katie laughed. "It's like waving a piece of bacon in front of a dog, almost giving it to him, then jerking it back and eating it."

Hermione nodded. "Fred's second least favourite thing in the world is not being allowed something he wants. This'll drive him mad." The others agreed, and even though it was near midnight, they were all hyper. Then Katie, the big softie in the group, froze. "Hermione, don't you feel guilty at all?" she asked, and Hermione paused, a chocolate frog half-way to her mouth. She nodded. "A little bit, yes, I feel like I could've been a little easier. But he was being so mean, and he's always been a little mean to me. I just need to work hard to knock him into place. I need to go a little farther than I would normally, because with Fred, normal isn't going to cut it."

Alicia smiled at Hermione. "I don't suppose you would let me have a little revenge on him, would you? You're my friend, and no one should ever treat you like that. And although we had a clean break, he was extremely, er, blunt about why we had to." Hermione shrugged. "I'm not going to stop you. I have one other thing in mind that I'm going to do, but it won't come into play until he proposes." Alicia grinned. "I know about some of the twins' products that aren't out yet, but are ready to be. One of those things is a potion, that acts like a boggart. It shows what the victim fears worst to the victim only. It works for an hour, and basically unending until the time is up. The twins decided not to sell it, but they gave me the prototypes, and the recipe."

Hermione grinned, and nodded. "Go ahead. I'd like the recipe, though. We should all have a copy, in case we need to set one of men in their place. Oh, excuse me, one of our boys." She said, pretending to be embarrassed. The others laughed again. Ginny suddenly caught an idea, and leaned forward to tell the others.

* * *

After the girls disappeared upstairs, the guys decided to invite a few buds over, and have a bonfire by the lake. Although they had to promise they wouldn't have any alcohol, they had managed to get Muggle sodas, like Coke and Mountain Dew. They were all just chilling around, and drinking whatever they chose. Harry had chosen who was coming, and had invited Oliver, Lee, Seamus, Dean, Neville, Draco and Blaise. Although the others were a little skeptical about two Slytherins there, Harry convinced them, and once Draco and Blaise arrived, everyone was friendly.


	8. Chapter 8

**Hey y'all! OKay, i am so totally sorry i didnt post this yesterday. My family and I went to Louisville, so yeah, really busy. I start school tomorrow, so i may not be so fast in the wholing writing and updating of chapters. But anyways, Chapter 8!**

Hermione changed in her room, and went to get approval from the others. They all nodded, identical smirks on their faces. "Go for it, Mione," Ginny said, and Hermione bounced out of the room, taking on a different personality. The other girls rushed to the window, and watched the bonfire party, waiting for the action.

* * *

Fred almost fell out of his seat when he saw her. She had removed her sexy outfit from earlier, and put on some short purple pajama shorts, that didn't really cover any of her long legs, and a purple tank top, the straps sliding down her shoulder a little. She was barefoot, and had a sweet smile on, though her eyes were playing a different emotion. Fred gulped as she passed him, a slight skip in her step, and went over to Charlie. Hermione looked at Charlie, catching his attention. He smiled when he saw. "Hey, you, what's up?" he asked, and she smiled.

"We need more pumpkin juice, and I know that the Leaky is still open for us to get some. But we promised your mum we wouldn't leave unless we were with you." She said, in an innocent voice. Charlie raised an eyebrow. "You want me to come with you to the Leaky?" he asked, and she nodded. "Puh-lease, Charlie." She said, making puppy-dog eyes at him. He nodded. "Okay, fine, c'mon." she grinned happily, and he laughed as he stood up. "Be back in a few, guys." He said, and walked off towards the apparation spot with her.

Fred stood up, feeling a little jealous. "Wait, hold up," he said, and Hermione turned around, Charlie stopped. Fred stood straighter. "You're going to the Leaky, dressed in that?" he asked, and she rolled her eyes. "No, I'm going in snow boots and a parka." She said, sarcasm dripping from her voice. Fred sighed. Hermione and Charlie just walked away, then disapparated. Fred sat back down. "Oh bloody hell." He said, running his fingers through his hair. Ron watched in surprise. "Hermione just looked cute and sexy at the same time." He said, and the other guys nodded in agreeance.

Oliver looked at Fred. "Fred, how are you doing it? Keeping her this mad? Surely you've tried to make it better." Fred shrugged. "I don't know how." The boys began shooting ideas at him. Ron mentioned a puppy twice. Fred shrugged, and was about to say something, when there was a crack. Hermione and Charlie appeared back by the bonfire. "Ouch, Charlie, that hurt." Hermione said, her hand flying to her left bicep-area. Charlie looked at her apologetically. "Sorry, Mione, it's harder in the dark. Here."

He pulled her hand away, and tried not to grimace. It was bleeding quite profusely. He pulled a bandage from his pocket, and bound her arm. At her questioning look, he smiled sheepishly. "Being a dragon tamer, you pick up habits." She smiled at him. "Thank you." She said, kissing his cheek. She then picked up the crate of pumpkin juice, and skipped back to the Burrow.

Fred felt anger surge through him as Charlie settled back into his chair, a strange smile on his face. Charlie seemed oblivious to the daggers Fred was staring at him as he resumed a conversation with Oliver and George and Seamus. Fred walked over to the four, and cleared his throat. "Um, Charlie, can I talk to you real quick?" he said, and Charlie nodded. Fred led his brother away from the warmth of the bonfire, and into the cool summer night. They stopped under a willow tree.

Fred turned around, and socked his brother in the jaw. Charlie backed away a little. "What was that for?" he asked, his hand feeling his jaw. Fred sneered. "Don't act like you don't know." He said, and Charlie rolled his eyes. "Yeah, because punching your fiancé's best friend is really going to help your situation." Fred froze. "What?" Charlie sighed. "Your fiancé is Hermione. I'm one of Hermione's best friends. You just punched me. Now put two and two together." Fred tipped his head back, and groaned.

"I didn't think that through." He said, running his fingers through his hair. Charlie nodded. "Yeah, I noticed. Now, I'm going to go make sure you didn't knock my tooth out." He said, turning away, and walking towards the Burrow. Fred sighed, and leaned against the tree. "Merlin, please save me." He said quietly, before returning to the bonfire.

* * *

Hermione took another drink of pumpkin juice as Angelina gossiped about other people's matches. She was about to say something, when they heard clattering from downstairs, and someone say, "Oh, dammit." The six girls exchanged looks. "What was that?" Katie asked. Hermione closed her eyes. "Sounded like Charlie." She said. Angelina laughed.

"Ginny, all your brothers sound the same from a distance, and Hermione's first thought is Charlie." She said. Hermione shrugged. "Charlie's voice is the deepest. It's quite sexy, if you listen." Hermione said, her cheeks taking on a slightly red taint. The other girls laughed. "If it's so sexy, why don't you go see what happened?" Katie said in a daring voice. Ginny, who looked a little sick, nodded. "Just don't ever call my brother sexy again." She said.

Hermione shrugged. "What, Charlie is a very sexy wizard." She said, knowing it would bug Ginny. Katie waved her hands, shooing her on. Hermione pouted. "I'm not going alone!" she cried, and Angelina looked at her. "Why not?" she asked, and Hermione put on an innocent face. "What if it's death eaters come back for revenge, and not Charlie?" She asked, and Alicia smirked. "You said it sounded like Charlie." Hermione shrugged. "They could've knocked him out." She said, making gestures with her hands. Ginny nodded. "Sure they could have. He also could've fainted." She said, putting a hand to her forehead dramatically, and pretending to faint off her bed.

The others laughed. Hermione sighed. "Fine, I'll go. But if I'm not back in twenty minutes, come find me." She said, standing up, and stretching. Ginny waved her on, and Hermione left the room, her wand held aloft, illuminating the dark hallway. She got down the stairs, and turned into the kitchen, flipping on the light. She gasped at what she saw.


	9. Chapter 9

Charlie looked up, to see Hermione rushing to him. "Charlie, are you okay?" she asked, and he nodded. "Yeah, fine. Why?" he said, and she gave him a look. He just shrugged. "It doesn't hurt." He said. Fred hadn't knocked out a tooth or anything, but had busted Charlie's lower lip. It did hurt, it hurt like hell. Especially when he talked or moved his mouth. But he wasn't going to tell Hermione that.

She glanced at the bloody split in his lip before looking into his eyes. She pulled up a chair beside him, and sat, leaning forward. "You're allowed to be in pain, Charlie. You don't have to be tough." She said, taking the wet rag he had been using to wipe the blood from his hand. She gently dabbed the split.

Pain flashed slightly from his lip. He flinched a little, but played it off by bringing his hand up to brush his hair out of his eyes. Hermione stopped. "Charlie, what happened?" she asked. Charlie thought quickly. "I, uh, I fell. Over my chair." He said lamely. She shook her head. "Of course you didn't. You aren't clumsy. At least not enough to trip over something right in front of you." He shrugged. "I didn't see it." she sighed. "Charlie, your eyesight is amazing. Even in the dark you would have been able to maneuver around your chair." He stayed silent, but shrugged in a 'oh well, you get what you give' kind of way. Hermione sighed again.

"Did Fred do this? Because I kissed your cheek?" she asked. Charlie shook his head, "No, no, of course not." She continued wiping the blood away. "Don't lie to me Charlie." She said quietly. He blinked. "I-" she shook her head. "I'm sorry, Charlie, I should have thought before doing that in front of him." Charlie shook his head, pushing her hand away. "No, Hermione, it's fine. It really doesn't hurt." She pressed the rag to his lip, harder than before.

He flinched again, instinctively backing away a little. "That didn't hurt?" Hermione asked, and he stayed silent. She lay the rag on the table, and lifted her wand. "This may sting a little, Charlie, but it will help it to heal." She said, and pointing her wand at his lip, mumbled something. The tip of her wand flashed, then went out. A terrible sting attacked his lip, but then stopped.

He looked at her curiously. "It stops the bleeding. You can't immediately heal things around your mouth, causes problems, and usually re-open, but that spell stops the bleeding." Charlie nodded. "Thank you, Hermione. Now why don't you go back upstairs, and have fun." Hermione nodded, and stood up. She turned to him as he stood up.

"Would you, by any chance, pass a message to Fred for me?" she asked slyly, and Charlie nodded. She grinned, and stood on her tiptoes to whisper in his ear. He paled a little, but nodded, grinning amusedly all the same. She thanked him, then skipped up the stairs. Charlie left to return to the bonfire.

When Charlie got back to the bonfire, he pulled up another chair, and straddled it, catching the attention of the others. "Fred," he said, "Hermione has a message for you." Fred waited impatiently, and Charlie grinned. "She says, and I quote, 'Tell Fred that he can bet his ass that I'll make them needles next time.'" Fred paled considerably, and sunk a little in his chair. George looked at him.

"Care to tell us what that means?" he asked, and Fred shook his head. The other guys all turned, and sat closer to Fred, and stared at him expectantly. He sighed. "This morning, to prolong her revenge, I think, she woke me up by dumping me in the lake. In an incredibly sexy outfit. When I got onto the bank, I asked her if we were even. She said no. Kind of. We were standing face to face, inches from each other, and I don't know where it came from, but I decide to kiss her. So she sent these little birds out to attack me. Before she returned to the house, she says, 'You better hope to Merlin I don't make them needles next time.'"

The other guys exchanged looks, and Ron reacted first. "Good luck, mate. I've had the birds, and those are bad enough. She hasn't made them spiders on me yet." Draco looked surprised. "How did you mix up spiders and needles, Weasl-bee?" he asked, and Ron looked at him. "I'm afraid of spiders. Fred fears needles." He said, and they all looked at him. It seemed to click in Blaise's mind first.

"You're afraid of needles, Fred? Needles aren't all that scary." Before Charlie could stop himself, he said, "Hey, needles are terrifying!" in a defensive tone before clapping a hand over his mouth. He blushed little, embarrassed, as the others turned to him. Except for George. "Oh yeah! I forgot. The Weasley genes strike again." Harry turned to the prankster.

"The hell are you talking about, Georgie-boy?" George scowled at the nickname, but answered, "Fears are passed down in the Weasley family. Charlie and Fred are both afraid of needles, along with some of our uncles we never met. Ron, Dad, and Aunt Muriel have fears of spiders, though Ron's is worst."

Charlie nodded. "Yeah, and you, Ginny, and Bill were all afraid of, what was it, monkeys?" he asked, and George gave him a look. "Kappas, thank you." He sneered, crossing his arms. Blaise leaned forward in his seat.

"So, if I may ask, whose fear is worst?" he asked smoothly, a slight smirk crossing his face. George grinned, also leaning forward, and the others followed suit, as if they were exchanging secrets. "Well, I suppose Fred. I know Charlie was trouble, and Mum stopped making him go once he started Hogwarts. It didn't matter, he somehow wormed out of every single trip to Mungoes. The few times they did manage to get him there, though, apparently were trouble." Charlie rolled his eyes, and shifted in his seat, so that he was sitting in it normally, with his feet propped up.

"Fred was a living terror. He was easier to control, though. They could usually just hold him down, tie him up, something. Even with all his prankster skills, he couldn't escape. If I remember correctly, there were several times when he cried." Charlie said, a smug grin on his face. Fred scowled. "I didn't cry." He said defensively. The guys laughed. "Sure you didn't, mate." Lee said in sarcastic tone. Fred rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Suppose we call it for tonight? It is late." He said, and the others nodded.

**Hey y'all. Okay, so this chapter may seem, like, really bad, but it wasn't letting me copy-paste to edit, which I always do, so it may be really, like, screwed up, but I hope its still understandable. I know I said I would post chapter ten as well, but I may not be able to, because of the whole copy-paste thing, and the fact that I stopped writing for a while at chapter sixteen er something, so I do need to write some more. I've hit minor writer's block. So, yeah. And I don't even know why this is at the end. Ah well. -Storm**


	10. Chapter 10

**Hey y'all! Okay, this chapter is, like, extremely short, so I'll probably have posted another one before it, because I do want to have some suspense play out. Er, try to, at least. Anyways, this chapter right here, this one, the one you're reading right now, is extremely important. Kind of. SO, even if you don't feel like bothering to read it, you should, because it may help you understand the story line. **

The next day, Charlie felt something was off. Of course, he couldn't put his finger on it. the only out-of-ordinary thing happened during the night, when Hermione came to him with a nightmare. He sighed. Hermione's nightmares were getting worse and worse, and much more common. At least once a week.

How she dealt with them by herself was a mystery. Hers from last night had been terrible. After he managed to calm her down, she fell asleep sitting in his lap. He had, after making sure she wouldn't wake up, laid her down in her own bed, and pulled her blanket over her. She looked peaceful, less troubled than he had ever seen her. He smiled at the thought.

Hermione was always in deep. If there was a glitch in the matrix, she'd be in the smack middle of it, doing her best to do what she thought was right. She didn't deserve to be troubled with nightmares. Poor girl. Charlie felt bad for her, she was such an amazing girl, and she had a lot of problems draped over her. He sighed, hoping he would always be there when she needed him to be. He also hoped Fred would be able to help her once they married.

It'll be suspicious if she appeared late at night to his flat in Romania. And making the Ministry suspicious was a bad idea. Charlie got up from his spot by the lake, and began walking back to the Burrow, wondering if she wanted to head down to Hogsmeade for a little while. And maybe Ginny, too. That's when it hit him. He burst into a run, and ran all the way back to the Burrow.


	11. Chapter 11

**Hey y'all! Okay, i know this took forever to put up, and i probably annoyed the crap out of all of you. I'm sorry aout that. But, this is important, so please read this. I do want to finish this story, but I've hit major writer's block. Like, a giant boulder is in my way. And I just started eight grade in the beginning of August, so i may not have a super lot of time to try and get past this. So, after this chapter is gonna be the last one for a while. I can't promise when another chapter will be up, but I'm going to try so hard you you guys. I swear! Alright, so, i think i've mentioned what i wanted to for this chapter. So, yeah, Chapter 11:**

Hermione woke up the next morning in her own bed. She wasn't sure how she got there. But she didn't really dwell on it as she quickly showered and dressed. She wore jean capris and a purple t-shirt, and slipped her feet into silvery-purple gladiator sandals. She brushed her hair, taming it enough so it looked much better, then braiding it back. It reminded her of her outfit from the day the law came out. She brushed her teeth, then applied light make-up, then walked into Ginny's room. The other girls were already up, and gone. The room was even relatively cleaner.

Hermione nodded, a little bit sleepy, and left the room, going down stairs. When she hit the bottom of the stairs, someone caught her in a hug. She blinked a few times. "What the hell?" she asked, her voice muffled as she was pressed into someone's chest. She pushed away, looking up. Charlie was looking down at her, worry etched across his face. "Hello Charlie, what's wrong?" she asked, glancing at the cut on his lip, then back to his eyes. He seemed surprised at her question. "Hermione, you've been asleep for a week and a half, with a fever." He said, and she looked at him. "What?" He pulled her into another hug.

"Eleven days, Hermione. You've been sleeping for about eleven days, with a monstrous fever." He said. She started to feel a little dizzy as he pulled her off her feet. "Please set me down, Charlie." She said quietly, and he set her gently on the floor. "We've just finished lunch, Hermione. Would you like something?" he asked, and she nodded, offering a weak smile. He gave her a small smile, and took her hand. Hermione followed Charlie into the kitchen. "Mum," he said, "Hermione's up." he said to Mrs. Weasley, who was washing dishes, and putting away leftovers. Mrs. Weasley looked over, and smiled when she saw Hermione.

"That's good. Hermione, go sit down, I'll fix something up for you. Charlie, I promised I would let Fred know when she's up, would you go tell him?" the matriarch said, and Charlie nodded. He led Hermione to the table, and waited until she sat down, before going off in search of his brother.

* * *

Hermione sat patiently, not having enough energy to analyze what Charlie told her. She yawned, and almost fell out of her chair when she heard a gasp from the doorway. She looked over, and saw Ginny. Hermione offered a weak smile, and yawned again. "Hello, Ginny," she said, and the young red-head rushed over to the seat beside her. "Hermione, you've been out for so long! How are you?" she asked quickly, and Hermione shrugged. "I'm hungry, somewhat confused. A little tired." Hermione said simply. Ginny gave her a side-hug.

"We've all been so worried. Charlie and Fred especially." Hermione nodded. "Your mum mentioned that. Why's Fred so worried about me?" she asked, as Mrs. Weasley set a grilled-cheese sandwich and a bowl of soup in front of her. She smiled her thanks, and Mrs. Weasley smiled, and returned to the kitchen. Ginny looked down at her lap before turning back to her friend.

"I'm not sure. But he's beat himself up since Charlie realized you hadn't woken up. He's talked to himself, mostly, and George every now and then. Seemed to have fallen into a rut. I hope you waking up lifts him out of it. He's been terrible. From what he's said to himself, and that of what I heard, he was afraid you wouldn't wake up. A healer from Mungoes stopped by, said that your fever was high enough to kill you. Fred almost fainted on the spot. Seemed to almost be in tears. Hermione, I don't think he told the truth, that first night. I think he lied to get you riled up." Hermione nodded thoughtfully. Then she gasped.

"What about your wedding, Gin?" she asked, and Ginny smiled. "You always did think of others before yourself. We've pushed it back a few days, because I want you to be my maid of honor. You have absolutely no choice, you have to be it." Hermione smiled, "Then you have to be mine. No choice." She said, and Ginny nodded, smiling, before continuing her story, "The Ministry sent a letter to Fred, saying that he would get a few extra days to propose after you woke up. He would also be given another month before being re-matched if you died. After getting it, George had to hold him back, almost stun him, to keep him from raging all the way to Moscow." Hermione nodded. "Ginny, why didn't I wake up?" she asked, and Ginny shrugged.

"The healer didn't say. He offered to have you taken to Mungoes, so that they could run some tests, but Charlie and Fred opposed the idea greatly. That healer's nose may never be the same after what Charlie did to it. Fred may have caused the poor man brain damage. They were very certain to keep you here, very certain indeed." She said, and Hermione laughed. Hermione quickly finished eating, then put her dishes in the sink, before returning to the table.

She and Ginny continued talking, about the weddings, about the law, about Fred, about healers with broken noses, about fevers, about just pretty much about everything. They talked for at least twenty minutes, before something collided with Hermione from behind, almost knocking her to the floor. Ginny's reflexes caught her chair, and Hermione held on enough, so she didn't fall, but someone crushed her in a hug.


	12. Chapter 12

**Hey y'all! Okay, so, I'm pre-writing this, so I have no idea when this chapter will be up. But I got some really interesting reviews for the last chapter. I want to make some things clear, because I suppose I wasn't as straight-forward as I thought. One: Hermione just had some sort of magical fever, due to shock or stress or something (which I may point out in this chapter), and it made her sleep for eleven days. She wasn't actually sick or anything. Two: Fred hit Charlie, remember? Busted his lip because Hermione kissed his cheek. In chapter 9, I think it was. Three: the healer didn't know. Because he made a 'house call' to the Burrow, he couldn't run the tests needed to know. And Charlie and Fred didn't want Hermione to leave. Okay, got through those. One more thing. Nightkitty555: I started reading these probably in the beginning of the year, and I had been creating my own little stories for the Harry Potter series. My friend had showed me this site, said I could also create an account, and post a story. So, yeah, I haven't actually known 'fanfiction' for a long time. **

Hermione twisted around, and locked eyes with Fred. She wasn't sure who she expected to see, but she was a little surprised. "I am so sorry, Hermione." He said, pulling her into a hug. "What for, Fred?" she asked quietly. He pulled away from her, and looked into her eyes. Without saying anything, she understood. Fred was apologizing for what he said, how he had treated her that first day. She nodded. "Apology accepted." She said, throwing her arms around his neck. He smiled, and kissed her cheek as he pulled back. They locked eyes again, and this time, Hermione tried to portray her apologies to him. He seemed to have understood, as he smiled, and nodded. "I deserved them." he said quietly, in her ear. She smiled slightly, and blushed. Charlie and Ginny both looked on, slight smiles on their faces. Mrs. Weasley bustled back in.

"Hermione, dear, the healer from a few days ago said that you were to visit Mungoes once you woke up." she said, and Hermione nodded. Both Charlie and Fred immediately offered to accompany her. "I'm her fiancé," Fred argued, while Charlie argued that he was one of her best friends, and he hadn't gotten to really chat with her for some time. They were that close to dueling, when Ginny jumped up. "I'll go with her!" she said loudly, catching both boys' attention. Hermione stood up. "We'll be back later. Toodles!" Ginny said brightly, then bouncing out the door with Hermione.

* * *

When they arrived at Mungoes, they were directed to room 47. They sat alone for a few minutes before a healer walked in. "Good afternoon, ladies, my name is Dr. Roberts and I will be helping you this afternoon." He said, offering a friendly smile. Hermione smiled back, while Ginny didn't pay much attention, but stared at the charts on the walls, humming. "Well, Ms. Granger, it appears on this report that eleven days ago, you did not wake up from your sleep, and had a terrible fever." Hermione nodded. Dr. Roberts nodded. "Alright. I am going to draw some blood, then perform texts on it, so as to find an answer to this riddle. Do I have your permission?" He asked, and Hermione nodded. He directed her to relax on the seat, and he drew blood quickly from her arm with a needle. She sat still, and relaxed. He whisked away, returning minutes later.

"It seems, Ms. Granger, that you were just mentally exhausted, and frustrated. Nothing to worry about. I suggest you take it easy for a while, and not to bottle up your emotions. You are free to go." Hermione nodded, and jumped down from the chair. She thanked the healer, and then led Ginny out of Mungoes. "You know," Hermione said as soon as they were walking around Muggle London, "I really do hate it there. Too stuffy, too white, too clean." She finished, and Ginny nodded, laughing. "Yeah, although I'd never expect you to say that." Hermione shrugged, and within that shrug, got a brilliant idea. "You know what else, Gin?" she said, grinning mysteriously. Ginny looked at her. "Hmm?" Hermione bit her lip before speaking.

"We should go get stickers somewhere." She said, and Ginny –Who had been intrigued by the Muggle toy, stickers, when Hermione had told her about them- nodded vigorously. They changed their route, and headed to a toy store. When they found the one Hermione had been looking for, called _The Rocking Horse_, they went in, and looked around. Ginny, who was in awe of all the trinkets and toys inside, wandered off, while Hermione headed straight to stickers. She chose several different packs: animals, faces, cartoon characters, and just plain old symbols. She walked up to the counter, and using the Muggle money she always kept in her beaded bag (which she had remembered to grab before leaving the Burrow), she purchased them, then walked over to Ginny, who was looking at stuffed animals.

"Hermione," Ginny whispered, "These things are adorable. I want one." Hermione smiled. "Pick one, and I'll pick one." She said. Ginny grinned, and picked up a black stallion immediately, thinking of her patronus. Hermione chose a dragon, thinking of _her_ patronus, which had changed after meeting Charlie, though she wasn't sure why. Again, Hermione walked up to the counter, and purchased the stuffed animals. The two girls left the store, and once Ginny was outside, she practically squealed. "Look at this, Hermione, it's so cute! I had a teddy bear like this once, but this is amazing." Hermione laughed, and nodded. "Yeah, Ginny. You grew up surrounded by magic, and cool spells, while I got the cool toys." She said, and Ginny shrugged.

"I'm going to name it Bullit." She said, after what seemed careful deliberation. Hermione nodded. "This is Dragon, the dragon." She said, causing Ginny to laugh. "How creative." She commented, and Hermione shrugged. "I know. Now let's get home, I want to show Fred and Charlie stickers." She said, and before Ginny could respond, the two apparated away. When they landed at the apparation point, Ginny sighed happily, then glanced curiously at her friend as they walked towards the Burrow. "What exactly are we supposed to do with the stickers?" she asked, and Hermione grinned.

"I'm glad you asked. See, you take one, like so," she picked one off the paper, and grinned, "And you stick it to your forehead." She said, pressing the lion sticker, which had been the one she picked up, to her forehead, making it stick. Ginny grinned, and pulled a sticker from the paper. It was a peace sign. Hermione helped her stick it to her forehead. By that time, they had made it to the Burrow, and into the kitchen. "Hey Mum," Ginny said as they passed through to the living room. "Hey, Molly," Hermione said, following Ginny. Mrs. Weasley nodded. "Hello, girls." She said, not turning to look at either of them.

Ginny and Hermione walked into the living room, and plopped down on the couch opposite where Charlie and Fred were sitting, and talking animatedly. Both men stopped when the two girls sat across from them, and simultaneously turned. Charlie grinned in his good-natured way. "Mione, Gin, you've both got something on your foreheads." He said, and the girls nodded. Hermione smiled sweetly. "They're stickers. Would you like one?" she asked, holding out the sticker papers, and spreading them out on the coffee table. Charlie thought about it for a moment, then nodded.

"Yeah. Can I have this one?" he asked, pointing to one of a dog." Hermione nodded, and peeled the sticker off. She leaned forward, and stuck it to his forehead. He grinned. "Brilliant." He said, and Fred, not wanting to feel left out, pouted. "I want one." He said, and Hermione giggled. She peeled a flower off, and stuck it to his forehead for him. "There you go." She said, sitting back in her seat. Fred smiled. "Thank you." He said, then noticed the stuffed dragon and horse.

"The hell are those?" he asked, pointing, and both girls grinned. "Stuffed animals. That's a stallion, and this is a dragon." Hermione said. Ginny bounced in her seat. "I named my horse Bullit." She said, and Charlie raised an eyebrow, amused. "Oh really? What did Hermione name her dragon?" he asked, and Ginny stopped bouncing, and rolled her eyes. "She named it Dragon. Dunno why, she's got a clever imagination." The guys laughed as Hermione shrugged, and hugged her dragon.

At that moment, George and Katie appeared. "Hey guys, what's up?" Katie said, skipping over to them. Ginny smiled. "Sticker?" she asked, and Katie, obviously catching on fast, peeled a heart off, and stuck it to her forehead. Then, taking George by surprise, she turned, and stuck one onto his forehead. It was a bunny. Ginny burst into laughter. "You've got a rabbit on your head, George." She said, and George stopped and thought. "Oh, great." He said, before sitting on the arm of a chair Katie had settled into. The six fell into a simple chatter, when Fred stopped.

"Hermione, I don't suppose you would accompany me to the garden?" he asked, and Hermione nodded. She picked up her beaded bag and her wand, then her dragon, and followed Fred out. He led her to a stone bench, and gestured for her to sit. She complied, and he sat beside her. Before she even thought of anything to say, or registered that he did, Fred leaned in, and kissed her.

**A/N 2: Okay, so in the middle of that chapter, I mentioned that Hermione's patronus had shifted from an otter into a dragon. According to book six, ****Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince****, we know that a patronus can, indeed, change. And that was a very Dumbledore-ish way to say that. And I know that your patronus is supposed to match that of your soul mate, which would imply that, because Charlie's patronus, I would assume, is also a dragon, they are soul mates. That is not how this story is supposed to particularly be. Don't get me wrong, CharMione is a wonderful ship, and I have nothing against it, but this is a Fremione story. I'm thinking of having more patronus shifting, so this story will make sense. So, yeah, just bare with me. **


	13. Chapter 13

"I'm sorry," he said when he pulled away, a half-smile on his face. "I just wanted to do that without getting jabbed in the stomach." Hermione blushed, and looked down. Fred reached over, and cupped her chin in his hand. "No, don't look away. Your blush is kind of cute." He said, which caused her to blush even more. Fred smiled. "Hermione, I'm sorry for the way I've treated you. I don't know why, or what for, but I swear I don't ever want to do it again." She nodded, and said, "Then I'm sorry too. My revenge must've been terrible. Though me sleeping for eleven days was not part of it." Fred nodded.

"I deserved it, Hermione, I deserved all of it. In fact, I feel like a I deserved much, much more." She nodded again. "Hermione," he said, and she looked at him. He was half-smiling again.

"Hermione, I know this is a different circumstance than you would've guessed, but I can't go through that again. It was worse than anything to, for eleven days, wake up, and not get to see you. Whether you were going to smile at me, or glance my way, or crack a joke, I just loved knowing you were there. I really have loved you. Ever since your fourth year, my sixth, when you told me and George, I quote, 'Its not going to work.' I heard the challenge, and I knew right then and there that you were the person I wanted to marry. Not Alicia, not Katie, not Angelina. You. And then the law came out, and I was matched with you. The first thing that came to mind was all my anger at this dumb law bubbling over. I had been extremely frustrated the night before, and then all of it just exploded. I couldn't figure it out, because my heart was soaring, and I felt as though I could fly right there. But I got mad, I acted like a git. And I didn't understand. But I'm sorry. For all of it. I just knew that the next morning, when you went shopping with Ginny, that I had to make it right. And I had a big plan on my proposal, but you didn't wake up, and I couldn't take. I just couldn't. I wanted to rage, and I wanted to cry, and I wanted to make you better. I was afraid you were going to die, and then I wouldn't get to marry you or anything. But anyways, please, please, marry me?" he asked, holding out a ring to her. She smiled, and nodded.

"Fred, I would love to marry you." She said, and he slipped the ring onto her finger. She hugged him. When they pulled apart, she said thoughtfully, "You know, you're a very good kisser, Fred, and I don't think I got the entire benefit of that kiss before." She looked at him with an innocent face, but a little mischief danced in her eyes. Fred grinned, and leaned forward, locking his lips on hers again. Hermione smiled when they pulled back. She was about to say something, when they heard a voice behind them.

"That was very romantic, guys, but Mum wanted me to tell you guys that dinner was ready." George said. Hermione blushed, and kissed Fred's cheek before picking up her stuff, and hurrying into the house. Fred rolled his eyes as he stood. "Really George?" he asked, and his twin shrugged. "As much as I know you'd like to eat her face, Mum's dinner is so much better." George said, turning smoothly into the Burrow, leaving Fred standing, with his head cocked to the side, and one eye closed, trying to decipher what he had just said.

* * *

Ginny sat between Harry and Hermione, with Charlie on Hermione's other side, and the twins across from them, and Ron on the other side of Harry, at the dinner table. Luna and Katie were there as well, with Luna beside Ron, and Katie between Luna and George. Ginny's mum and dad were both sitting at the end of the table, Mr. Weasley beside Fred, and then Mrs. Weasley beside Fleur, who was beside Bill, who completed the circle by sitting beside Charlie.

Percy was, as always, missing from the meal, off who knows where doing who knows what. Ginny leaned into Harry's shoulder as the meal magically served itself onto plates. The day had been eventful. Before lunch, she went and got her wedding dress, which was tiring, then she came home, and after lunch, Hermione woke up. Then the trip to Mungoes, and Muggle toys. And Hermione hadn't told her what Fred had said when they disappeared into the garden. Though the bookworm looked a little flushed.

* * *

Ron was seething in anger. Even the prospect of all the food in front of him wasn't making him feel any better. even if the others didn't notice, he had seen the ring on Hermione's finger. He had been watching –waiting- for it to appear. And now it had.

* * *

Harry put an arm around Ginny. His fiancé looked exhausted, which was deserved. Ginny wouldn't think of it, but she had helped her mother plan their wedding all week, and some parts of the others', including sending out all the invitations. And today had obviously been eventful, with Hermione waking up, then the two immediately leaving. Hermione! Harry was so happy to see his best friend better, maybe not quite as happy as Charlie or Fred, but definitely happy. He was only wondering one thing.

"Why have you guys got stickers on your forehead?"

**Hey y'all! Okay, so bigreddp pointed something out in what a said about patronus shifting and stuff, so I think I would like to correct what I said about it. bigreddp is actually right in saying patronus-es don't actually mean soul mates. So, yes, I was wrong on that. But, yeah, I probably will have patronus-shifting anyways. So thanks, bigreddp for pointing that out to me. Um, and also, I'd like to say that one of the upcoming chapters will be kinda short, but it has a really long author's note. So if you read those, congratulations or something; and if you don't, then, oh well, you can skip it. um, so, yeah. Oh! You guys wanna hear a lame joke? Too bad, I'm saying one anyways.**

**Q: where do you find a turtle with no legs?**

**A: right where you left it.**

**Um, yeah, I'm really, like, not-cool or whatever its called. Get used to it. so, uh, yeah. See ya later. -Storm**


	14. Chapter 14

Hermione sat in Fred's lap in Harry and Ron's room, leaning against his chest. She hadn't realized it before now, but she was relatively smaller than him, her head resting just under his shoulder. And she wasn't slouching as much as she had to when she and Ron dated during the Horcrux Hunt.

_Yes_, she thought, _I did have to slouch a lot to sit like this with Ron. Oh, I hope I don't compare these two. That's not really polite. _She shifted on Fred's lap, sitting a little straighter, a little more comfortably. Fred put his arm around her. Harry grinned at them. "Good, you two made up?" he asked as he came in, and settled on his bed, with Ginny laying beside him. George rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, they made up, and I have a feeling we'd all rather Ginny came over and sat by her favourite brother." He said, and Ginny just smirked. "No, Charlie seems to be okay over there." She said, nodding at Charlie, who was wrapped in a conversation with Fred, and lounging comfortably on the floor.

Harry, Hermione, Luna, Katie, and Ron laughed at the shocked look on George's face. Fred and Charlie turned to them. "What just happened here?" Charlie asked, and Fred shrugged. "I have no idea. Oh well, why are we up here when we don't fit?" he said, and Harry nodded. "Oh yeah. Well, I was thinking that maybe we should have a bonfire with all of us, so that we can get to know each other well enough. We are going to be family soon." He said, and the others nodded.

"Will we invite anyone else?" Ginny asked, and Harry nodded. "If we feel like they belong. Anyone?" he said, and Hermione nodded. "I have a friend who I'd like to be here. He is, technically, my family. He'd be about Charlie's age." She said. The others nodded, and Harry smiled.

"He can come. How about we do it tomorrow, instead of tonight?" he said, and Hermione nodded. "Alright, so tomorrow, is everyone okay with that?" Harry said, and everyone nodded, before leaving the crowded room. Hermione walked slowly to her room, feeling extremely tired even though it was only about nine. She yawned, walking into her room.

Quickly, she scribbled off a letter, and sent it with Beta, the owl she had gotten after the war. She changed into some shorts, and one of Charlie's shirts, then rolled into bed, thinking to herself she would need to get some of Fred's shirts, as she was going to marry him.

Hermione woke sometime in the night to tapping on her window. Blinking, she saw the distinct shape of Beta, holding another letter. She got up, and let him in. Beta took a treat from her hand, then left, leaving her alone. She quickly read over the letter, then grinned. Laying the letter on her bedside table, Hermione quickly fell back asleep, happier than before.

Charlie awoke the next morning, and stood up from his bed. He felt like today was just going to be good. Fred and Hermione had made up (which he felt on the fence about), they were having a bonfire (friends, family, and fire- what could go wrong) and of course, Hermione was up. Hermione was, possibly, his best friend, if not his closest. She was at least one of his best friends. As he got ready for the day, he thought about how they had met.

**Hey y'all! Okay, okay, I know this chapter is shorter compared to some of my other ones, and I apologize. I try and fit 850+ words in each chapter. I don't know if that's an average or not for other stories, but that's what I go with. And I apologize, because this chapter, just the actual story part is about 580 words. So I apologize. And it's a cliff hanger! Sorta. Not really. No, not really at all. But I do try and add a few of those, but of course, I don't actually know if they're a cliff-hanger or not. Alright, several points to make. Okay, one: I said before that I don't need reviews to keep going. Which is true, I don't, I'm gonna write this anyway. But I would absolutely love some feedback. I'd like someone to tell me if the story is good or bad, or just sucks entirely. So, if you think, 'hey this story is absolutely terrible' then please tell me. I won't get an attitude with you, because I did say that you could say that. So yeah, feedback would be nice. Um, what else was I gonna mention? Oh yeah! Okay, so I dunno if I've said this already, but I don't have a beta for this (though I do have a stuffed lion that I named Beta) so if some of the grammar is bad, I apologize. My grammar tends to suck at times. Sorry. But, uh, yeah. I promise, though, that this story will at least get to the wedding. I also probably won't have a 'wedding night' kinda scene. I probably won't even try, because I'm not the greatest at love-writing. I have lots of trouble with it for this story. Surprise! Yeah, kissing and stuff, I suck at it. And I'm sorry. So, uh, yeah. That's a huge author's note. I wouldn't blame you if you actually didn't read all of it. Here's a joke for those of you that did:**

**Q- Why can't dogs dance very well?**

**because they have two left feet.**

**Yeah, I know, I suck. I'm sorry.-Storm**


	15. Chapter 15

**Flashback**

Charlie arrived at the battle only moments after it started**, **and he hadstayed until the end. With the exception of Harry and Hermione,he stood onlywith his red-headed family. Voldemort was dead.

Harry looked as though he needed comfort, probably more than anyone else-yet there he stood, his arms wrapped around Ginny, quietly soothing her. Fred lay on the ground, not too far away from Tonks and Lupin. Madame Pomfrey was bustling around with a supply of tonics, giving urgent instructions to the group of healers and students who volunteered to help. They all hurried to heal the injured, and make sure the proclaimed "dead" were truly dead. Hermione was among them, rushing from person to person, muttering healing charms or checking for a pulse.

She seemed to be exhausted, and her lip was bleeding. She was bruised, bloody, and covered in a layer of grime. She looked terrible, but the moment she entered the tight circle of Weasleys, who were crying over Fred, Charlie wrapped her into a hug.

"Don't even try," he whispered to her. The look in her eyes had told him that she wanted nothing more than to break down and cry, yet also push away from him to continue her work.

All she did was nod, before hugging him back. She was much smaller, and her arms didn't reach all the way around him. But it was comforting to him. The two, who had rarely ever even talked when they happened to be around each other, stood like that for several minutes.

Finally, Hermione pulled away.

"Thank you, Charlie." She said quietly, before leaving to help a young girl from Ravenclaw.

She must've snuck back to fight, because the girl looked much younger than fifth year. Hermione cleaned the blood off her hand, before disinfecting and healing it. Madame Pomfrey pushed past Charlie. She checked Tonks and Lupin first, only a couple of minutes passing before she stood up and said something to Harry with a sad look on her face. Harry looked down, and nodded, pulling Ginny even closer.

Then Madame Pomfrey knelt beside Fred. She began her routine, when she abruptly stopped. Confused, she called Hermione over. Hermione too, knelt beside Fred, and began doing the same thing Madame Pomfrey had done. Charlie looked on, and Hermione looked up at him. She waved him over.

"Charlie, your hearing is as good as your sight, can you hear his heart?" she asked. Charlie thought she must've been on to something, so he complied.

He lowered his ear to Fred's chest, and could hear, if he blocked everything else out especially, the distinct beating: _thump…thump…thump. _It was very slow, and spread out, but it was there. Charlie sat up and nodded.

"He's still alive. At least, his heart is still beating." He said, confusion lacing his voice.

Madame Pomfrey's eyes seemed to shine as she began working, calling over a healer from St. Mungos, and telling him the situation. Hermione smiled at Charlie. He gave her a muddled look.

"If his heart is still beating, Charlie, then we can still save him. They're going to immediately send him to St. Mungos."

Charlie half-smiled as the information processed in his mind. Hermione just rolled her eyes playfully, then stood up, and walked over to his mum and dad. She explained it to them, pointing things out. They both dried their tears, understanding faster than Charlie had, then explained the situation to the others. Slowly, they dispersed, hope displayed on everyone's faces. George had stayed with the healer that was bringing Fred to Mungos. Ron had followed Ginny, away to help some of the teachers clear out dead bodies-a job which made both look a little sick. Percy and Bill were helping the rest of the teachers clean up the castle.

Repairs would need to be immediate if they wanted to re-open Hogwarts before next school year. Which, knowing McGonagall, they would. Charlie's mum was helping Madame Pomfrey by helping with healing, and assisting McGonagall by yelling out orders to everyone. Harry was standing beside Tonks and Lupin's dead bodies, talking to Mr. Weasley. Hermione had disappeared after telling Mrs. Weasley something. Charlie looked around, sitting on his haunches.

He didn't really feel like doing anything, actually. Not that he could think of, at least. So he just sat, watching, trying to figure something to do. He didn't feel like healing, nor cleaning up. He felt like he was needed elsewhere. Just so he wouldn't be in the way, Charlie left the Great Hall, letting his tired feet take him wherever.

He eventually ended up in the library. And it looked terrible. The bookshelves were knocked over into each other, and books were everywhere, open, torn, singed. He felt a little dizzy at the sight.

Despite having been an amazing seeker, and being a dragon tamer now, he had always loved the Hogwarts library. He had gotten special permission from McGonagall: anytime after lights-out he could visit the library.

He immediately took out his wand, and began separating everything into piles. As the spells worked to have the books find their lost papers and re-attach them, he lifted the bookshelves up, and repaired the shelves. He figured he was making progress, when he heard a grunt and a huff. He turned around, and began looking for the source of the sound.

"Who's there?" he called out. Then he heard a crash, and an 'oomph' sound.

"Hey, could you come help me?" someone called out, "I'm over here by the window."

Charlie walked over to the big window, and found a shelf knocked over. He pulled it up, finding Hermione crouched under it.

"Hey, thanks." She said, standing up. "Oh! Hey, Charlie."

He nodded.

"How long have you been in here?" he asked. She shook her head.

"Since Fred was taken to Mungoes. I just couldn't see the rest of the school. I came here, hoping it wouldn't look so bad. Or maybe I hoped that I would be able to curl up with a book. Oh well, I started cleaning up the pages, and then all of a sudden, they started fixing themselves. So I just went and started picking up the shelves."

Charlie nodded. "Yeah, I learned a spell to make books fix themselves."

She sighed. "Charlie, I don't think I want to clean up the library anymore. It's hurting my brain."

Charlie smiled kindly at her. The Gryffindor Princess was exhausted. He pulled her out of the library, and back down to the Great Hall. He led her over to his mother.

"Mum, Hermione and I are going to head back to the Burrow. We're going to just chill for a little while, before everyone comes back." He told her, and Mrs. Weasley nodded. She gave each of them a tight hug, as if confirming to herself that they were still alive.

When she let go, Charlie immediately apparated away, holding tight to Hermione.

"Ta-da! Magic!" he said as they landed in the Burrow's living room. Hermione smiled, and thanked him. He just shrugged.

"Okay, you can either go up to Ginny's room and crash, or you can just save the trip and crash here in the living room. Your pick."

She giggled, and sat on the couch.

"I'll stay right here." She said, and curled into a ball, immediately falling asleep. Charlie lay a nearby blanket over her, then flopped onto the other couch, falling asleep the second his head hit the cushion.

It was several hours later, when everyone else was entering the Burrow. Charlie felt someone shake him through his half-but-mostly-asleep haze. He blinked in the light, then pushed himself to prop up on his elbow. Bill stood in front of him.

"Go on up to your room, Charlie. We're all back, except for Fred and George. By the way, they say Fred's going to live absolutely, though it may be a few days before he wakes up."

Charlie smiled, and rolled off the couch. He wanted to stumble up to his bedroom, but turned back to Bill.

Charlie nodded towards Hermione questioningly. Bill shrugged.

"Take her up to Ginny's room, I guess. Harry and Ron went to their room, and I'll have to carry Ginny up. She fell asleep at the castle, and I apparated her here." He indicated towardGinny, who was half-haphazardly hanging off an arm-chair, like a ragdoll who had been throw onto the chair. Charlie simply nodded, and regained his sense as best he could, before picking up Hermione, and carrying her up to Ginny's room.

As he went up the stairs, he noticed that the Burrow would have to be renovated. Charlie set Hermione in the extra bed in Ginny's room, then–not having the energy to stumble almost five floors down into his room and not caring in the least he was in Ginny's room- he flopped onto the floor at the end of the bed, and settled back asleep.

**Hey y'all! Okay, so I have said several times before, that I don't have a beta. Now I do! Her name is lexi3con28. She's amazing, not even kidding. Yeah, so the flashback will continue in the next chapter, so don't worry. -Storm**


	16. Chapter 16

_**Flashback continued**_

The next morning, Charlie was the last to wake up, even though it was only around ten. He was somehow in his bedroom. He supposed that they had levitated him there when Hermione and Ginny woke up. 'They' being Bill most likely. His older brother: always looking out for him. Yeah, his mum would've murdered him had she found Charlie in the girls' bedroom. He sighed.

From his bedroom, he could hear the sounds of cheerful laughter and chatter. Yeah, things were going to change, and change fast. With Voldemort gone, there would be less fear, and fewer mysteries. He rolled off the bed, landing with a _thud_ on the floor. After doing it, he lay on the floor, and burst out laughing. He had woken up like that for years: just roll off the bed, miss the bedside table, and the sudden awakening was effective. During the war, he had refrained from doing it, in case he needed to be silent, and to keep him from accidently injuring himself. As he finished is outburst of laughter, he realized how good it felt.

Pulling himself to his feet, he wandered to his closet, and quickly grabbed a change of clothes, and ducked into the bathroom. He showered, and got dressed. Wearing a simple black t-shirt and cargos, he stumbled down the stairs. "Morning, guys!" he said, walking into the kitchen. Mrs. Weasley smiled at him, and gave him a plate of food. "Eat up, Charlie, we've got things we need to get done." He nodded at the command, and began eating.

He understood why they had work. The Burrow had been attacked while they were hiding out at Muriel's, and it was pretty pitiful from the outside. The actual frame wasn't terrible, but it probably wasn't safe enough to actually live in. Rooms would need to be re-built, and added on. Good thing there were plenty of guys around to work. And the girls would probably begin fixing the garden and cleaning the inside. As Charlie ate, he watched the others.

Harry and Ginny were on the front swing –which could be seen through the broken window- and were cuddling. Ron was arguing plainly with Seamus and Dean about which Quidditch team would win the cup this year. Fleur was helping Mrs. Weasley. George had obviously stayed at Mungoes with Fred. Hermione was listening to a Muggle gadget –an iPod or something- swaying and dancing around the room as she helped clean and repair the inside of the room. This room was the least broken of the rooms, and it was still bad. Luna was talking animatedly to Bill, who didn't seem to be paying attention, but trying to create a list of what needed to be done. Mr. Weasley had already gone to the Ministry.

Charlie was just finishing as Hermione stood in front of him. She placed her hands on his biceps, and pushed him out her way, so she could repair the cabinets he had been standing in front of. He grinned, and put his dishes in the sink. As he turned back around, Hermione smiled at him, one earbud taken out her ear.

"Charlie, could you reach that for me?" she asked, pointing to the watermelon sized rock sitting on top of the cabinet. "I don't think it's supposed to be there, you see." She explained. He snorted, and lifted it down for her. She reached for it, but he held it out of her reach, and raised an eyebrow. "Why do you want it?" he asked. She thought for a moment, then shrugged. "I dunno. Would you go put it out by the lake or something? Somewhere out of the way? Do you mind?" he shook his head, and left the Burrow, walking towards the woods on the farthest edge of their property.

As he walked, he thought. Hermione was sweet. He was grateful that neither he nor she had died before he had gotten to know her. He didn't have a crush on her, of course not, but he had been wanted to befriend the little bookworm when she proved that she was more ingenious of dragons than him three years ago. When he finally got to the lake, he took hold of the rock, and walked down the dock. Laying on his stomach, he positioned the rock to fall under the dock.

Finishing that, he began walking back to the Burrow. He took his time, smelling the flowers, as the Muggles say. When he got back to the Burrow, he helped his brothers re-build the house.

He didn't even see Hermione until that night, when he was going back to his bedroom from the bathroom, and heard crying from the girls' bedroom. He paused in front of their door. He knew it wasn't Ginny, he knew Ginny's cry. No, this must be Hermione. Slowly, he opened the door, and slipped in. He made his way over to her. Her wand was lit, and laying on her bedside table. She was crying into her hands, sniffling every now and then. He sat on the bed, pulling her into his lap.

"Hush, Puppy, it's all right. Don't cry. What happened?" he said in a soothing voice. She stopped crying so hard, and looked up at him. "Charlie?" she asked quietly, and he nodded. "Yeah, Puppy, it's me." She nodded, and shook a little in his arms. "I had a nightmare. No one survived the war except me. Me, and the Death Eaters. They took turns." She cut herself off there, but he understood. "Its, okay, Puppy," he said, stroking her hair and trying to comfort her, "We're all still alive. Even Fred, thanks to you." She nodded, and stopped shaking. They sat in silence, until she seemed to have calmed down.

"What did you call me earlier, Charlie?" she asked quietly. "I called you Puppy. Do you mind?" she shook her head. After an even longer silence, she fell asleep. He carefully set her down in her bed, covered her with a blanket, then turned her wand off. Then he silently left the room. that was their first official encounter, and were extremely close friends after that.

_**flashback end**_

**Hey guys, Storm here! So, uh, I know it's been forever since I last updated. I didn't mean to do that, but I've been really busy. I'm not going to go into detail about it, because it would just take forever. But, now I've gotten a little extra time on my hands, and I'm going to post this. I decided that Charlie would sometimes call Hermione 'Puppy', because I have read a lot of stories where they call her 'Kitty' instead, and I always thought that Puppy was a bit better sounding. In case you were wondering. Now, I have a question for you guys. Totally random, and it will have little to do with the story, unless I go all wiz-tronic on you guys (wizards using as much electronical stuff as Muggles). But I was wondering if you guys have any Youtubers you like to watch. Like, I watch CaptainSparklez and ImmortalHD a lot (They both post a bunch of gaming content). I've also seen a lot of hoiitsroi. Also, do you guys have any musical artists that are mostly YouTube-bound, such as One2Five or Cimorelli or Megan Nicole? I was curious, because I spend quite a bit of time on YouTube when I hit writer's block or just don't feel like concentrating too much. As always, I'll try to post soon. I promise. GG-no-Re, folks. –Storm.**


	17. Chapter 17

As they ate breakfast, Harry put everyone in charge of different things needed for the bonfire that night. The twins were to get different drinks, preferably all Muggle, and non-alcoholic. Hermione suggested some for them. Harry and Ron were to get enough wood. Hermione, Ginny, and Charlie would run into Hogsmeade or Diagon Alley and pick up everything they would need, including getting Hermione's friend. After finishing their food, they all apparated away to their respected areas of need.

Hermione and Ginny planned out how to do things as soon as they got into Hogsmeade. Charlie would go get the extra food they needed, and then meet the girls in Honeydukes. Hermione and Ginny entered Honeydukes, and Charlie walked down the street, looking for a different store.

Unlike most days, Honeydukes wasn't crowded. Ginny smiled. "Hermione, you get chocolate frogs. I'll get every flavour beans." She said, then walked off between the isles. Hermione nodded, and skipped over to the chocolate frog section. She slowly picked different ones from different racks, and placed them in a basket she had picked up by the door. She didn't know why she was so selective, she couldn't see the cards, no one could, and the frogs were all the same, unless you chose a large frog. Which she did. She chose five, in fact.

She normally did, as they were huge frogs, about the size of her head, and had four cards. And although the others never tried them, saying it didn't make any sense, they had a much better taste. At least to Hermione. They seemed to have a taste that she liked better, though she couldn't put her finger on why. She assumed she liked them so much because she was close to people who did. Hermione smiled, and took her choices to the counter. The girl behind it smiled.

"Good day and welcome to Honeydukes! Did you find what you were looking for?" she said cheerfully, and Hermione nodded. "Yes, thank you." After buying the chocolate frogs, Hermione took her purchases, and walked over to Ginny. "I'll wait outside." She said, and Ginny, who was concentrating on whatever she was doing, nodded. Hermione walked out of the cool shop, and sat on a bench outside it. She pulled out the large chocolate frogs, and put them in her beaded bag, except for one. The other chocolate frogs she kept in the paper bag from the store, and tucked it inside her beaded bag as well. Hermione then opened the chocolate frog she had saved, and took a bite of the chocolate. Slowly, she ate it, waiting for Charlie and Ginny.

Hermione had finished her large chocolate frog, and Charlie and Ginny were still busy. Before separating, they had decided that once one person was done, they would just wait for the others. The sky seemed to be gathering dark clouds, and Hermione sighed. She picked up her bag from her lap, and stood up. She looked down the small village street. There were only a few people, though all the shops were open. She walked down the street, and came to one of the bookstores.

She breathed in the book-y smell when she walked in. The store-worker, daughter of the store-owner, came over to her. Hermione recognized the women, and smiled. "Hello, Cho." She said, and Cho smiled. "Hello, Hermione. Did you know you have a sticker on your forehead?" she said, tapping her forehead, and Hermione clapped a hand to hers. She had put on a new sticker after she showered this morning. "I totally forgot about that!" she said, and Cho laughed. "You've been spending too much time with Luna. Are you looking for anything in particular?" she asked, and Hermione shrugged.

"Not really. I don't suppose you have anything newer?" she asked, wondering if there was something she hadn't read. Cho nodded, a sly smile on her face. "Come over this way, I'll show you." Hermione followed Cho to the back room. "It's not on the shelves yet, Hermione, but I'll make an exception for you." Cho said, turning on the lights. The Asian witch walked over to one of the shelves in the back of the room, and returned with a box that was part open.

Cho balanced the box on her leg, and took one of the books out. She held it out to Hermione, who took it. The book's cover was red velvet, with leather bindings, spine, and outline. On the cover, in gold letters, was _Hogwarts, A Better History_. Hermione gasped, smiling. Cho nodded, grinning. "It was published a few weeks ago, and it's not come out anywhere else. This is a special edition, there are only about two hundred copies, and it's only going to be in a few book shops. There are charms on it to keep people from ruining them, trying to duplicate them, and for if yours is lost or stolen, you can get it back. It's been revised, and added onto. They have a second part to it coming out soon. If you have the first part, then the second part will come in the mail to you." Cho said, and Hermione smiled, excited.

"This is what I want to get." She said, and Cho nodded, leading her to the counter. Hermione reached into her bag to pull out some money, but Cho shook her head. "Don't, you deserve it." she said, waving her wand over the book. Then she smiled. "That's yours, now, Hermione." She said, and Hermione smiled. "Thank you, Cho." She said, then thought of something. "If you don't mind me asking, who are you matched with?" Cho smiled.

"I was in Mungoes when they matched everyone. This law has been in the works for a while, and they couldn't match someone who was in a coma. But I've been dating a Muggle for quite some time. Dudley Dursley, in fact. I heard about him from my mother, who is a big gossiper, especially about Harry Potter. He's gotten much better, much nicer. I really like him." she said, blushing a little. Hermione grinned. "That's sweet, Cho. I'm matched with Fred Weasley." Cho laughed. "I'm sorry, that's the last person I expected you to be matched with." Hermione shrugged. "Same here." She spotted Charlie leaving Honeydukes out of the corner of her eye.

"I have to go, Cho. Don't be a stranger." Cho nodded. "Same to you. I live here above the shop." Hermione nodded, and the two girls briefly hugged, then Hermione left the shop.

**Hey guys! So I really liked writing this chapter, because it's the intro to the next OMG-OMG moments. I'm so excited for these few chapters to come. Like, seriously. And I would like to thank anyone who gave suggested a YouTuber to me. Absolutely, I thank you. Also, you guys can continue to suggest YouTubers to me. You guys can suggest whatever you want, actually. I actually wanted to mention something, though, if you guys don't mind. I admin two pages on Facebook. One is **_**P.S the bird bites**_** and the other is **_**Harry Potter Lives On **_**and I would love it if anyone could go check them out. On **_**P.S the bird bites**_** I am Lily, and on **_**Harry Potter Lives **_**On I am Lion. So if you guys feel like it, I'd love for you to check them out. Thanks to all of you who continue to enjoy this story. mKay, BYE -Storm **


	18. Chapter 18

She walked over to Charlie, who seemed relieved to see her. "Okay, new rule, you can't just disappear like that." He said, and she shrugged, putting the book into her beaded bag. "I got a book." She said, and was about to continue when Ginny bounced out. "Time to go guys." She said, and they began walking towards the apparation point, when sudden thunder clapped loudly across the sky, which darkened with clouds.

It was extremely dark, you couldn't see in front of you, and rain fell in torrents. Lightning would flash, giving everything a creepy glow, then disappear into darkness again. No one had expected it, and the shop-keepers began closing everything. The few people who were caught were disapparating with cracks that could only just be heard. "Hermione!" she heard Charlie yell. She looked around wildly, trying to find him. She saw nothing giving away his position. She heard him call again, but he was cut off half-way through her name.

Hermione ran in the direction of where she assumed his voice had come from. She almost fell when Hermione felt someone grab her hand. She turned around, and saw gray eyes- and only gray eyes- staring at her. "Granger, come on, Ginny disapparated away with him." Draco Malfoy whispered in her ear. Hermione was surprised, she and Malfoy hadn't really forgiven each other like the others had. Thunder clapped again, in a series of claps, as she tried to pull away, shaking her head. "No, I'll be okay!" she shouted over the rain and wind and thunder.

Someone else appeared behind her again. "Hermione, please, it'll be okay, you can floo back. Please don't stay in this storm." The stranger behind her said, and she stopped pulling. They led her into a shop nearby and flipped on the lights as they came into the shelter. She looked around, wiping water from her eyes. She recognized the stranger as Blaise Zabini, another person she hadn't really forgiven. She shivered, the cool shop air freezing the water that soaked her. That, and she was in a Hogsmeade shop with two Slytherins that she hadn't forgiven and had tormented her for years. Yeah, one of those.

Draco glanced at her, his silver-blond bangs stuck to his forehead. He looked much paler than usual in the dim room. "Would you like something to drink, Granger? I need to start the fireplace for you to floo." He said, and she shook her head. Blaise, who had disappeared down a hallway, came back in, holding three towels. He tossed one to Draco, who caught it with one hand, using the other to try and start a fire in the stone fireplace. Blaise strode over to Hermione, and held the third towel out to her. She took it. "Thank you." She said quietly.

Blaise nodded, his dark eyes masking any emotion. He dried off as best as he could himself, and then walked into the kitchen. Draco seemed to finally have got the fire started. He stood up, looking very proud. Blaise laughed at Hermione's confused look. "Unlike Seamus Finnigan, Draco is untalented in the pyrotechnics category. This is an extremely ingenious accomplishment." Blaise said, and Draco sneered.

"It's not like you're any better. Dry off, Granger, and then you can floo back to the Burrow." He said, and Hermione nodded. She quickly dried off as best she could, then folded the damp towel. "Do you want me to put this anywhere?" she asked, and Draco shook his head, while Blaise nodded. "You can just set it on that chair. I'll do something with it later. Make Draco put it in the washing machine, you know. Did you know about the machines Muggles use to clean clothes? Very useful." He said, and Hermione smiled, nodding. "Yes, I am Muggle-born, I know about washing machines." She said. He grinned, and shrugged. "Yeah, well, you're still a person." He said, and she gave him a confused look. He shook his head, and walked around the counter.

"War changes peoples, Hermione Granger. Now, you better get back, before Charlie or Fred worry. Please send our greetings to the Weasleys and Potter." He said, taking her hand, and leading her to the fireplace. He reached up to the top shelf above the mantle, and held out a leather drawstring bag to her, holding it open. "Floo powder," he said, and she nodded, reaching in to take some. She dropped it in the fire, and said, "The Burrow." Then stepped in. Hermione travelled through the Floo system, and appeared in the living room of the Burrow.

**Hello my lovely readers. Wow, never said that before. Okay then. I was hoping that this is an interesting look into a different side of the Wizarding War after the BoH. I also hope you guys liked this chapter, I definitely enjoyed writing it more than a lot of other chapters. Also the next chapter. So, I was wondering now, who would you guys picture best with Draco and Blaise that aren't already matched in this story. You can match them any way you like, and I will listen. I'm on the edge about who to put them with, so maybe you guys can give me ideas. Well, I must let you guys continue on whatever you like, so BYE -Storm**


	19. Chapter 19

Charlie was worried, and pissed at Ginny. Ginny was pissed at Charlie, and worried. She had apparated away with him before he had a hold on Hermione. He hadn't kept a hold on Hermione long enough to make it to the apparation point in the village. Fred was pissed at the both of them. And worried. The storm that ravaged all of Europe made it impossible to apparate anywhere. According to their mum and dad, Ginny and Charlie were lucky they didn't splinch.

And Hermione would know not to disapparate. Currently, they were in the living room, going at it for the sixth time in twenty minutes. "Why didn't you hold onto her long enough, Charlie?" Ginny shouted, and Charlie huffed. "I dunno, maybe because I didn't have the time to find her!" he yelled, and Ginny huffed. "You grabbed me immediately, why not her?" Charlie rolled his eyes. "I've already said it, she was too far away for me to grab her!" Ginny clapped a hand to her forehead.

"Too far? You love her, Charlie, and she was too far?!" Charlie froze, his irritated expression gone. Instead, he looked shocked. Then he gave her an 'I can't believe you' look. "How do you know that?" he asked, and Ginny sighed. "How not, Charlie? The entirety of the wizarding world knows that you would give anything to hold onto her and never let go. It's not like you were trying to hide it. No wonder you never tried to get her. She was always too far away." Ginny said, shaking her head, looking at him with pity, and exasperation. Charlie just stormed past her. Fred, who had been watching the fight with annoyance, looked after him, then at Ginny. She sighed again.

"It was obvious." She said plainly, before walking out. Fred sighed, sitting on the couch. He and Harry had talked about it. They would postpone the bonfire until the storm stopped. Fred had convinced Beta to fly a new letter to Hermione's mysterious friend. So they decided to wait until it ended to have the campfire. He was thinking about this when the fireplace lit up in green flames, and Hermione came out. She swayed for a few moments, then stood straight.

"Holy hell, that was fast." She said, and he laughed, standing to give her a hug. She laughed as he pulled back quickly. "Oh, ick, you're all wet." He said, and she raised an eyebrow. "I'm not all wet. I'm part dry." She said, and he shrugged. Then she looked around. "Have you seen Charlie? After I dry off I want to ask him what happened." Fred nodded. "He just left the room. I don't know where he went, though." Hermione nodded, and walked out of the room.

Charlie sighed when he heard the knock on his bedroom door. "Go away, Ginny! You aren't forgiven!" he called, laying flat on his back on his bed. "Charlie, its Hermione. Is now a bad time?" Hermione called through the door. Charlie groaned silently, and could feel his face redden. "Not particularly! Hold on." He said, rolling off the bed, and walking over to the door. He opened the door, and there stood Hermione. She smiled, and opened her mouth to say something, then froze, and pointed at his hand.

"Your hand is smoking." She said, and he looked down, holding his hand up. "Yeah, uh, it does that. When, uh, when I get frustrated. I, uh, I just need to calm down." He said, and she raised an eyebrow, clearly amused. He shook his head. "Don't ask. Hey, are you okay? Ginny apparated me and her away before I could find you." Hermione nodded. "Yes, Charlie. I dunno how, but Draco Malfoy and Blaise Zabini noticed me, and helped me out. Dunno why either, we haven't exactly made-up." she said, and he gave her a confused look.

"Why not?" he asked, and she shrugged. "It's harder to forgive and forget for us, I suppose." She said, and he nodded. "Oh. You know, Hermione, I'm going to go see what Mum is making for dinner. Don't eat too many chocolate frogs." He said, and she nodded, stepping out of his way. He walked past her, waving, and she smiled, going back to her room. She rolled onto her bed, and pulled Dragon over to her. "Hey, Dragon. What's up?" she said aloud, then rolled her eyes, and set the dragon back down.

"I'm talking to a toy. A cute toy, yes, but still a toy." She rolled over onto her stomach, hanging her arm off the bed. She reached into her beaded bag, and pulled out all the chocolate frogs, and her book. She was extremely grateful she had put a waterproofing charm on it. She set her book on the bed beside Dragon, and then pulled the four cards out of the chocolate frog from earlier. She snorted when she saw them. After the war, a lot more cards were produced, some more rare than others, some of the rarest being Harry, Ron, Ginny, Neville, and herself.

But the cards she had were just a little less rare than those, but still uncommon, the four being Fred Weasley, George Weasley, Charlie Weasley, and Blaise Zabini. Hermione thought about it, and then laughed out loud. Ginny came in from the bathroom between their rooms. "Hey, Mione, what's so funny?" Hermione nodded at her cards, and Ginny looked, then she too laughed. "How'd you get those?" she asked, and Hermione shrugged. Ginny sat down on the end of the bed.

"Well, more for your collection, I suppose." She said, and Hermione nodded. Not many knew it, except for her closest friends, but Hermione collected chocolate frog cards, and her collection was huge. At the moment, she kept the cards in a box, but she planned on putting them in an album. And she had a lot. But she always got more, and whatever she had extra of, she could find someone who wanted it instead. After the girls calmed down enough, Hermione felt really tired. She yawned. "Nope!" Ginny said, yanking her friend to her feet.

"You can't go to sleep. Anyways, you're supposed to take it easy. Sleeping isn't easy." Ginny said, and pulled Hermione downstairs. Molly, who had already had dinner ready, hurried them to sit, and eat. Everyone ate, then all of them except for Mrs. And Mr. Weasley wandered into the living room. Hermione sat on the couch beside Charlie, leaning on his shoulder. She listened to the conversation, although not putting in any in-put herself. Often, she would yawn, and eventually fell asleep.

Charlie sighed. He knew Hermione was asleep. No matter how inconspicuous she tried to make her yawns, he saw them. He gave a sleepy-smile to the others. "I'm going to carry Hermione up to her bed, and then turn in myself. Don't stay up to late." He said, standing up, and picking Hermione into his arms.

**Hey, Hey, Hey. How's it going, y'all? Um, I know some of you said that you liked Charlie not liking Hermione like that, and I understood that. Even though my OTP is Fremione, CharMione is also pretty high up there, so I couldn't help but write this. But I promise that it's not like that. I'm doing my absolute best to keep them just friends, I swear. And, you may interpret this chapter differently when it comes to this. So yeah, not much else to say this author's note. But I guess I can give you a fun fact about myself. I decided to use the name Dragon for Hermione's stuffed animal, because I pronounce it differently. When I say the words 'Dragon' or 'swagger', I pronounce my 'a' like you would in the word 'age'. So I ****say**** "dray-gon" or "sway-gger" So, yeah. I say things funny. And I honestly am positive that it's for no reason. I just woke up one day, and I said it like that, and now I have trouble saying 'swagger' or 'dragon' like normal people. Hmm. Mrow. BYE -Storm**


	20. Chapter 20

**Okay Guys! Woo! Chapter 20! We made it this far! Yay! Um, I just realized that it's been 20 chapters, and I've not written one wedding. Wow. This story has got to be frustrating to read. Like, every time it updates, you must be like, "Yes! Maybe someone will get married this time!" and then no one does. Jeez. Okay, I promise that people will be getting married soon. If we make it to chapter 25, and no one's married, I will slap myself for you guys. I'll probably end up having a, like, five thousand word chapter just to fit things in. Oh jeez. Well, go on, read chapter 20. I'll update soon. **

**Disclaimer: I really don't own Harry Potter. I don't. I'm sorry if you thought I did.**

Hermione woke up in her own bed the next morning. She just shrugged it off, deciding it was probably Charlie or Fred who moved her. The storm was tamed, and now it was just drizzling. She quickly got ready for the day. While in the middle of brushing her teeth, she thought of something. Gasping exaggeratedly, and almost choking herself, she spit the toothpaste out of her mouth, and ran up to the twins' bedroom. She burst in the room. Fred was the only one of the twins still asleep, but he shot up as the door slammed against the wall. He blindly fired two hexes in separate directions. Hermione yelped as a fire curse skimmed her arm.

Fred rubbed his eyes, and saw Hermione standing in his doorway. He stood up. "Oh, hey Hermione." He walked over to her. When he saw her clearly, he held back a laugh. "What's up?" she whimpered, and he looked at her arm. "Oh, sorry!" he carefully took her arm in his hand, and soothed the burn with a spell. Then he pulled a bandage from his desk drawer, and wrapped her arm. She raised an eyebrow, then shook her head. "Fred, why didn't someone remind me to tell Adam and Aleks we're not doing the bonfire until later?"

He shook his head. "I had Beta take them a letter." She nodded. "Oh." He grinned. "Yeah, oh." She blushed slightly, looking at her feet. "I guess I'll let you go back to sleep, then." She said, turning slightly towards the door.

Fred pulled her arm. "Wait. Hermione, you've toothpaste on your chin, and you're shirt is wet." Hermione looked down at her shirt. Her wet hair had dripped onto her white t-shirt, and the red and blue and purple dots of her bra showed through it. Her face reddened even worse. "Oh, shit." She said.

Fred laughed slightly, and she shoved him back. "It's not funny, Fred! Why didn't you tell me before?" he shrugged. "'Cause it was cute." She pouted at him. "You meanie!" she said, hitting him in the chest. Before she could hit him again, he caught her lips in a kiss. The kiss took her by surprise, but she responded immediately. She pushed closer to him, and let her tongue run against his lower lip. He refused, but pulled away. "I just woke up Mione, my breath must be terrible." He said. She shrugged, half-smiling. "Then I'll leave you to wake up better. See you at breakfast." She said, waving her fingers at him, and turning to go back downstairs. As soon as she was out of sight, Fred quickly shut his door, and went to take a very cold shower.

Hermione was still blushing when she got back to her room. Not only did she freak out for no reason, she went to Fred to freak out, completely making a fool of herself. Also, she didn't even properly finish getting ready. Carefully, so as not to forget anything, she finished getting ready for the day, then bounced happily down the stairs.

At the breakfast table, Hermione sat across from Fred. The conversation flittered around, and Harry and Ginny and George did the majority of the talking. At one point, Hermione told Harry she would owl her friends later, and tell them the new date for the bonfire, which would be the day after tomorrow. Supposedly, all the bad weather would be gone, and it would be perfect for a bonfire. That's all she said, while Fred said nothing. But right before breakfast ended, Ginny spoke to Hermione. "Mione, I didn't see you this morning when I came to borrow your sandals. Where were you?"

At that, Hermione squeezed her eyes shut, blushing. At the same time, Fred cringed, and laughed. "Not one word to them, Frederick Weasley, or I will murder you." Hermione said, putting her head in her hands. Fred held his hands up in an act of innocence. "Wasn't going to say anything, Boo." Her head shot up. "What did you just call me?" Fred grinned. "Boo. You're my Boo, because you scared me this morning." Hermione just shook her head, pushing her chair back. She stood up, and sighed. "That's it, I'm done with breakfast. I'm going to go owl people." She said, and left the dining room. As she half-stormed up the stairs, the dining room burst into laughter.

He quickly read over the letter Hermione had sent him and his flat-mate.

_Guys, we're holding the bonfire day after tomorrow. For sure this time. Please come, you need to meet them. Anyways, you'll be at my wedding with Fred, you need to meet the Weasleys. They're nice people, I promise. Please come day after tomorrow, and if you want to stay longer, you can. –Hermione_

Hermione. His Hermione, really. Not, of course, his lover, or his girlfriend. But more his sister. At least. Well, the way they had come to be so close, she could be considered his daughter. But he wasn't that old. Or boring as her father was. She was his family, though. He called his flat-mate into the room, and handed him the letter. His flat-mate. He snorted at the title. Really, they were brothers. Brothers from another mother, didn't Muggles say that? Something like that. That's what they were though. Exchanging grins, the two boys nodded, and scribbled off a note to Hermione, sending it with her owl, Beta.

When Hermione got the return letter, she grinned then stuck it in her desk drawer. Nothing had made her happier right then than that letter.

**So, what did you guys think of this chapter? I managed to embarrass Hermione, kind of embarrass Fred, which is something I suck at. I don't write embarrassing things so good. Like, seriously. And you guys got a glimpse of Hermione's "mysterious" friends. I'm excited for you guys to meet them. I guess that's all for now. ~Storm**


	21. Chapter 21

**Okay guys! Chapter 21! So, I have several things to point out before the chapter. There will be a small author's note in the chapter, and it will be bolded. I'm just letting you know. I'll mention some important stuff also at the end of the chapter. In the next chapter, also, will be a small in-chapter-reading author's note. Also, if this is kind of badly written, it's because I changed my mind when writing this, and I had to start over but I'm trying to get this chapter to you before tomorrow comes. Do you guys want to know why? Of course not, but I'll tell you anyways. TODAY'S MY BIRTHDAY! Yay! *cue confetti* Um, I just felt the need to post on my birthday. I'm finally fourteen-years-old. Jeez, 13 took forever to be over with. So, yeah. There will be a second author's note at the end of this chapter as well, so stay tuned for that. ~Storm**

The rest of that day, and the day after pretty much went by uneventful. The only major thing that had happened at all was that Harry had gotten a letter from Mungoes, which he kept completely to himself. So it was the day of the bonfire, which would be later that night. Ginny and Harry would be getting married in two days. Hermione sighed.

She was laying on her back on her bed, staring blankly at the ceiling. Nothing was encouraging her to move, she was so incredibly bored. There was probably another two or three hours before they would even think of bonfires. And her two friends hadn't arrived yet. There was absolutely nothing to do, nothing to think about, nothing to comprehend.

She wondered absentmindedly if this was how Ron felt all the time. It was around three in the afternoon. Her window was open, and cicadas from outside were buzzing. She sighed, closing her eyes. She was positive she couldn't get anymore bored, when her door slammed open. She sat up, startled, wand at point. Harry was standing there, grinning.

"Sorry, Mione. I just got an owl from Mungoes. Sirius is up!" Harry said excitedly.

Hermione jumped up, grinning, and they ran downstairs into the kitchen. Mrs. Weasley was ordering everyone around. "Let's see, Harry and Hermione, you two may go ahead and see him now, we'll be along in an hour or two. He is going to stay here for a little while, so we need to prepare." Mrs. Weasley said.

Harry and Hermione nodded, both grinning like maniacs, and flooed to Mungoes. Harry ran breathlessly to the counter, still grinning. "Sirius Black?" he asked, and the medi-witch smiled. "Room 394." She said, and the duo began laughing as they ran down the hall to the room. Stepping in the open door, even more breathless, they heard an excited cry.

"Finally!" Sirius cried, "People!" Hermione ran forward, faster than Harry, and Sirius engulfed her in a hug. "Hey, Puppy," he said, using the old nickname he gave her, back in the end of their third year through owl-post. She smiled. "I missed you," she said quietly, and he nodded. "I think I would've missed you could I have made any coherent thoughts while stuck in own mind." She laughed. Sirius looked up at Harry.

"Harry, my boy. You've gotten taller, haven't you? It's good to see you doing so well after the war." Harry smiled. "It's good to see you up, Sirius. I missed you." Harry said. Sirius grinned.

"Well, how have you guys been?" Sirius asked. Harry sat in a chair beside the bed, grinning. "The marriage law the Ministry set is going in my favor. I'm engaged to Ginny. We defeated Voldemort. I'm not dead, so I suppose I'm doing well." Sirius nodded, chuckling to himself. Then he stopped.

"Marriage law? That's low. Puppy, who are you matched with? Surely not a Slytherin." He said, and Hermione shook her head as she settled beside him on the bed. "No, Sirius, I'm engaged to Fred." Sirius pulled her head from his shoulder, and looked at her. "Fred Weasley?" she nodded, and he sat up, looking all over her.

"He hasn't hurt you yet. I'm impressed." Hermione burst into laughter. Harry smiled. "Yeah, after the initial shock, they fit well together." He said. Sirius pulled her into another hug.

"Good luck, Puppy. He better not hurt my little sweethearted Puppy. Speaking of sweetheart," Sirius said, "How's Adam doing, do you know?" she shook her head. "Haven't seen him since April, when I went to pick some stuff up for the twins' birthday. He's supposed to come over to the Burrow later." Sirius looked thoughtful for a second. "April? But didn't he-" Sirius started, but someone cut him off. "Miss you since then?" said a tall man who was leaning against the door frame.

Hermione turned around, then her face lit up in a way neither Harry nor Sirius had seen in a while. She ran off the bed, and the man caught her in hug. When he put her down, she gave him another hug, squishing him in a hug only Mrs. Weasley could rival. He smiled at her, unaffected by it, whereas most people she hugged like that would be breathless.

"Sweetheart," he said, and she let go. "I missed you," she said, and he nodded. "I missed you too, Sweetheart." Hermione glanced at Harry and Sirius, her smile plastered to her face. She turned to Harry, pulling the man by the hand. "Harry, this is my friend, Adam Gealach. Adam, this is my friend Harry Potter." She said. Adam stuck out his hand, and Harry shook it.

"Pleasure to meet you, Harry Potter. Hermione's told me plenty about you." Harry nodded. "All good, I hope." Adam shrugged. "For the most part." Adam said. Then Hermione turned to Sirius. "Adam, you remember me telling you about Sirius Black?" Adam nodded. "This him?"

Sirius nodded before Hermione. "Nice to meet you. I'd stand up, but I was in a coma, and told to stay put." Hermione rolled her eyes. "That didn't mean you listened. They've probably hexed you there." Sirius shrugged. "That too." The four of them laughed. Adam then nodded.

"As much as I've enjoyed meeting the two of you, I've come with an actual purpose. I owled Hermione, sending the owl to the Burrow, because that's where I expected you to be. I got a reply from a Mrs. Molly Weasley, saying that you came to Mungoes, to visit a friend, and asking me to come and see you two back to the Burrow, and Sirius, if he was allowed. She also told me to say that no matter what Sirius Black said, he was to stay at the Burrow for at least a week before returning to Grimmauld Place, and he had no say in the matter whatsoever." Hermione nodded, still smiling. A healer entered the room.

"Mr. Black, you are allowed to leave, but if you feel anything is wrong please return." Then the healer waved her wand, and then walked out. Sirius stood up, still dressed in the clothes he had fallen through the veil in. "Well, as I must accompany you guys to the Burrow, let's stop by Grimmauld Place, and let me change and get clothes." They all nodded in agreeance, and apparated to the house in London, Hermione helping Adam by side-along apparation.

When they got there, Sirius was already upstairs, and Harry and Hermione and Adam waited in the kitchen. They weren't waiting for more than five minutes when he was back with them in the kitchen, wearing some worn jeans and a black t-shirt, and had slid his feet into some sneakers. Harry, then Sirius apparated first, so they wouldn't all land in the same place. Hermione waited for a moment, before again using side-along apparation. She and Adam appeared at the apparation point just outside the Burrow wards, though still extremely far from the house. Harry and Sirius were walking not too far ahead, talking and laughing.

Hermione began walking with Adam. He put an arm around her shoulder. "Well, it seems particularly cozy here. I must say, I'm jealous of their house structure, it is very intriguing." Adam said, and Hermione laughed, knowing he wasn't teasing, but complimenting.

He smiled. "Oh, your laugh reminds me. I was taking the morning shift at work a few weeks ago, and these two girls walked in with three guys. And one of the girls comes up to the counter, asking for the Muggle fantasy section. I show her, and on the way, we pass the romance section, and the other girl squeals, running to it. The guys that were with them, already looking thoroughly amused, walked over to the shelf she was looking at. One of them pulls down a Muggle book. Twilight, I think it was. The guy starts reading aloud from the middle of it. Within, like, three seconds, all three of the guys are just cracking up. The girl who wanted Muggle fantasy had already picked out the book she wanted, and was watching. She walks over to them, picks the book up, and reads some more. I don't think she was reading it exactly from the book, because she was grinning mischievously, and the way she was reading it, getting very theatrical, the boys were laughing even harder." Adam continued telling his story, and Hermione was just giggling, and laughing in several places.

No one had ever seen Hermione so excited, or happy. At Sirius's and Harry's entrance, they all trooped outside to wait for Adam and Hermione. Ginny and Luna were talking, Ron and Harry were talking with Sirius, and Fred, George, and Charlie were talking when they all heard laughter. Looking towards the path, they saw someone with Hermione, she was laughing, and he was smiling good-naturedly, telling her a story. Both Fred and Charlie were looking the man over.

He was tall, at least as tall as Bill, who was the second tallest of the Weasley clan. He had shaggy blond hair, and slightly tanned skin. He was built like a Quidditch player, muscled, and strong. Through his tight white t-shirt, they could tell he had muscles, and easily a six-pack. The man had a good smile, and as he got closer, they noticed his bright blue eyes. **(The person I based the looks of this character around is a real person. His name is Adam Lundgren Bodus. Please Google him if you don't know him. He is not the actor, Adam Lundgren.)**

Ginny and Luna stood up from the bench they were sitting on, and both were eyeing the man's body. "That is a very sexy wizard." Luna said bluntly, not trying to hide her stares. Ginny nodded in agreeance. Ron and Harry both threw looks at the two girls. Luna shrugged, smiling at Ron, while Ginny walked over to Harry. "But, Harry, he is nowhere near as perfect as you." She said, kissing his cheek. Harry felt better immediately. When Hermione and Adam got to the group Hermione just grinned as she made introductions.

"Adam, this is Ginny Weasley, Luna Lovegood, Ron Weasley, George Weasley, Fred Weasley, who is my fiancé, and Charlie Weasley. Guys, this is my very, very distant cousin, Adam Gealach." Charlie and Fred both relaxed instantly, as both were jealous of the man. Adam grinned at them all, shaking hands with a few of them. Charlie was looking at him, not with jealousy anymore, but with confusion.

"Adam Gealach? Seriously? Man, it's been forever." Charlie said, seeming to finally catch whatever he was looking for. Adam looked at him, recognition appearing on his face. "Yeah! How's Romania?" he asked. The others looked on in confusion as the two began a conversation. Hermione smiled. "You guys know each other, don't you?" she said, and Charlie nodded. "Greatest Beater I have ever seen. Better than Fred and George, and any pros. He was in Gryffindor, and my year." Adam nodded. "I wouldn't say best Beater, but I definitely had fun. Though Charlie was our seeker. Never lost a match once he joined us."

Charlie shrugged. Hermione smiled. "Are you guys going try out-complimenting each other, because I have you both one-upped." The group laughed. "Hermione, Mum wanted to know if you would mind helping us clear out and redecorate Percy's room for Sirius." Ginny said, and Hermione nodded. She, Ginny, and Luna all ran into the house. Then the guys heard, "If you charm that room pink, I'm sleeping in your room!" then some squeals and laughter.

**Okay guys! How was that chapter? Um, to explain the in-chapter author's note: this story has been around, though not on any website just my computer, for about a year and a half, I'd say. I named Adam before I discovered Adam Lundgren Bodus. But Adam Lundgren Bodus is exactly what I was picturing when I came up with Adam the character. Adam Lundgren Bodus is part of my most favourite band in the world: One2Five. They are amazing! They've been a cover band mostly, and have only been a band for seven months. They're from Sweden, but in January, they'll be going to LA to see if they can set up a record deal. I'm so so so so so excited for them, and proud of them. And definitely guys look them up if you don't know them. **

**Also, the thing with Sirius. I had the idea to incorporate him, just for a good father-figure for Hermione when he was needed. I always thought that even though Sirius and Hermione picked at each other, they got along so well. I decided that after Bellatrix died, the veil spit Sirius out, and he was in a coma. Mungoes, because his name was cleared, took care of him in the meantime until he woke up. If the idea sounds familiar to anyone, it's because I read something extremely similar to this once, and I don't remember from where. If anyone can point out from where, tell me, and I'll be able to give credit where credit is due.**

**Also, I mentioned ****Twilight****. I am so sorry, if anything I said about it offended you. I'm not going to say any of you can't be ****Twilight**** fans. I absolutely hated the series, did not like it at all. I try not to do too much bashing, but I honestly could not help this, and it wasn't that bad. I could've done worse bashing, really. Um, but I am sorry if I offended you in any way.**

**I guess that's all for this author's note. You guys will meet Hermione's other mystery friend next chapter. You have no idea how happy I was to FINALLY write Adam in. And none of you have any idea how much I love One2Five. Like, seriously. They are a super amazing band, and I really mean that because I don't normally like bands. But I LOVE One2Five. They are awesome. Welp, that really is all for now. ~Storm**


	22. Update!

**Okay, guys, hi. I know it's been forever since I last uploaded a new chapter. I'm going to do that right after I post this update. I have a lot I want to say. **

**First: I will finish this story. I have massive writer's block, on a lot of my writing. So it may take a long time, but I will finish it. It may not turn out how you guys like. You can all hate me if I do it to your dislike. **

**Second: Merry Christmas, Happy Birthday, Happy New Year, Happy Hanukkah (sp?), Happy Kwanza and all those holidays I missed. Most of them were over a month ago. **

**Third: In my last chapter, I mentioned One2Five. Updates on that, if you care. If not, skip to the next paragraph. One2Five is still one of my favourite bands, even though they've changed the name. They are now known as 'dot SE'. I seriously love them and their music. Hate me for it if you want, but I seriously do.**

**Fourth: I also mentioned ****Twilight**** in my last chapter. I did not like ****Twilight****, I'm sorry. I couldn't help but bash them. I could've done worse. You can hate me for that too if you'd like. I'm sorry if I offended you any way. And please don't think I hate ****Twilight**** because I'm a Potterhead. I did read the first two books, and saw the first movie in the saga. I did not like any of them. I could not continue reading or watching the series. **

**Fifth: I read this really good book a few days ago. It's called ****Quell****, and I absolutely adored it. It's written by Sonya Hill. I don't know exactly why I told you guys, but I did think it was absolutely amazing. **

**I honestly think that's it for now. Right after I upload this, I'll put up the new chapter to ****A New Chapter****. **

**Thank you all for continuing to read this, and I will finish this story eventually. I hope the next chapter is to all of your liking. If not, I'm sorry. **

**:) -Storm**


	23. Chapter 22

Dinner that night was a happy affair. Everyone chattered and laughed as they ate. Those who would be going to the bonfire ate quicker. Fred and George were the first to finish, and they left to gather the things they didn't have.

It was around eight when the group trooped down to the fire pit. For the first twenty minutes, they all situated themselves in different places around the fire, and chose which of the drinks they wanted. Then, they all sat and looked at each other.

Fred and Charlie, who were sitting across from each other, had started a staring contest between themselves. The others were watching to see who would last longest. Both Fred and Charlie lost at the same time when they heard a snort, followed by giggling. They all turned to the sound, where Hermione was sitting. She was laughing, and listening to what Adam was telling her, a smirk on his face.

Fred grinned. "That was attractive, love." he said. Hermione blushed, and they all laughed. That seemed to break the ice better, and they all fell back into the chatter they had carried at dinner.

"We should play truth or dare." Ginny said after a while. They all agreed. George decided he wanted to start. "Hmm, Charlie, truth or dare?" Charlie shrugged. "Truth, I know you, George." George pouted. "If you had been matched, regardless of who they're matched with, who would you want?" Charlie grinned. "Hermione, of course," he said, looking right at her, and she blushed. Charlie smiled.

"Ron, truth or dare?" Ron sighed. "Dare, I guess." Charlie grinned. "Kiss your fiancé." He said, and Ron turned pale. They all waited patiently, and finally Ron turned to Luna, and gave her a peck on the lips. She smiled at him. Anyone could tell that had been the first romantic thing between them. Ron's ears were red, and he quickly pulled the attention from himself.

"Adam, truth or dare?" he said loudly, and quickly. Adam looked shocked to hear it, and so did Ron, but they accepted it. "Uh, truth?" he said. Ron nodded. "How many bones have you broken and why?" Adam laughed, and Hermione grinned.

"Let's see, I've broken my right arm four times and my left twice in Quidditch, cracked my skull in Quidditch. I fell down some stairs after a fight with my dad and broke my right arm again. Then my right arm again when skateboarding down a roof. And another time my left arm when I was dueling a friend at Hogwarts, and he sent me flying into a wall. And then when my second girlfriend broke up with me, she kicked my shin, and broke that. And I smashed my hand when my friend dared me to let him run over it in his pick-up. And many, many more." Hermione and Charlie were both trying not to laugh. Adam sighed, and grinned.

"Truth er dare, sweetheart." No one knew who he was asking, but Hermione smiled. "Truth." She said, and he smiled at her. "If you were in a life or death situation, what song would you want to be playing, regardless whether er not you die?" she grinned. "Crazy Train, by Ozzy Osbourne. Duh." Adam laughed. "Katie, truth or dare?" Hermione said. Katie shrugged.

"Truth." She said. Hermione smiled. "When George first asked you out, what did you think?" Katie blushed, and said, "After the initial shock, and excitement, I thought it was a joke. It took him four hours to convince me otherwise." She finished, and Hermione giggled.

Katie smiled. "All right, Harry, truth or dare." Harry raised an eyebrow. "Dare." He said cautiously. Katie thought for a moment. "I dare you to throw Ginny in the lake." She said. Harry shook his head. "Nope. Not doing that. I'd prefer to keep myself intact, thanks." The group laughed, and Ginny rolled her eyes. "Katie, you're bad at this." She said. Katie shrugged.

Hermione smiled. "I'll be right back." She said, standing up. Adam looked at her. "You okay?" he asked, worry in his eyes. Hermione nodded. "Yeah, I have get something." She said, before walking up to the house. Adam watched her carefully for a moment, before looking back to the others. Fred looked at Adam.

"Adam, how do you know Hermione?" Fred asked. Adam looked up at him, surprised. "She hasn't told you guys?" he asked. They all shook their head. "Hasn't mentioned it all. Just said you were a close friend of hers, and that she'd like you to be here." Ginny said. Adam shrugged.

"Oh. I grew up a few houses down from her house. I'm a pure-blood, but got regular training in whatever my parents could sign me up for. My parents didn't really like me. Even once I was in Gryffindor. But I learned to play Muggle sports, and how to play Muggle music instruments. I learned to cook the Muggle way, as well as all of the Wizard ways. The Christmas of my third year, I went home for the holidays. While I was home, my parents threw a Christmas party. Hermione was six years old then, and she came to the party with her parents. I had no friends at the party, because my parents didn't like my friends either. So I took care of Hermione that night. Me and her became friends, of sort. After that, anytime her parents needed her out of their way, I'd come over and hang out with her. When I graduated Hogwarts was the year before she started. I got my own house a few blocks over, and lived on my own. Once I had my own place, she was a little bit like my sister or something. She'd come during the summer and stay for several days. Her parents and her got along, but she wasn't into the dentistry they did. They tolerate each other, and love each other deep down. Sometimes they have fights. She'd just come over to my house. She kept a lot of her Hogwarts things at my house, actually, and she has her own room there. Me and her, we go way back. Kind of. Anyways, the Muggle government people think I'm her cousin, and that's why she spends so much time with me. To them, I'm partially her guardian. Which is fine with her, and her parents. And that's the story." Adam nodded, to punctuate himself.

The others nodded. "I didn't know that." Ron said. "I didn't know she fought with her parents. I thought they were a little happy family." Adam shrugged. "Most of the time they are. Of course, she hasn't gotten to see them since the war. They understand why she did what she did, but they decided to stay in Australia. It hurt her a lot they didn't want to come home. I don't even know if they'll come to her wedding. I know she'll invite them, if she didn't already."

An awkward silence fell over them. It didn't last long before a shriek rang through the air, and they could see two figures running from the house. They all jumped up, wands out. Adam squinted, and then caught Hermione before she ran past him. She was laughing, and out of breath. A man ran into the firelight.

"Damn," the man said, also slightly out of breath, "She's gotten faster, Adam. We'll definitely lose at tag." The man finished, grinning. Adam grinned. "You're late, Aleks. You said you'd come earlier." 'Aleks' just shrugged, trying to catch his breath. Hermione smiled. "Guys, this is Aleks. Aleks, these are my friends. You know Adam and Charlie." She said, before twisting out of Adam's hold, and walking around the fire, back to her chair.

At her calmness, the others began to sit down. Charlie had walked over to Aleks and Adam, though. Quickly, they had a whispered conversation. Aleks and Adam grinned, and nodded. Then Charlie conjured up another chair for Aleks. Better introductions were made, and everyone began talking again.

Fred looked at Aleks, trying hard to take in his appearance. It was hard, with the only light being the fire. Aleks had coal-black hair that fell in a thick shaggy appearance. He seemed to have pretty pale skin, and a tall frame. He seemed broad, but less broad than Adam and Charlie. "Did you play Quidditch, Aleks?" Fred asked. Aleks turned to him and nodded. "Yeah, I was a Beater, on Gryffindor. Just like Adam." Adam nodded. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Fred, I tell you now, they're more inseparable than you and George. Adam and Aleks. You never hear about their shenanigans at Hogwarts, because they bested even the Marauders. The professors don't mention Adam and Aleks, for fear they'd have repeats. They're worse than Peeves, I swear." Adam and Aleks grinned. "Yeah we were!" Aleks said. Fred and George looked at each other, eyebrows raised.

"Worse than Peeves? And us? And the Marauders?" George asked. Hermione nodded. "Yes. I'm not kidding." Adam grinned as the others all exchanged looks. "Aleks, ole boy, I don't think they believe it." Aleks shook his head. "I don't think so either."

Everyone waited, as these two were using the tone Fred and George did when trouble was about to occur. Hermione sighed, smiling. "You guys are about to hear an amazing story." She said, leaning forward. At that, Aleks broke into story, Adam taking over and adding to it in different spots.

**Okay, guys, that was that chapter. I definitely had fun writing it. I will not be telling the story Adam and Aleks tells, because it's definitely way too long, way too un-perfected. I've got an outline of it, kind of, but I probably won't put it in this story. Maybe I'll make it a spin-off or something. I hope you liked this one. Also, if you want a better picture of Aleks, Google in Google Images: immortalhd (ImmortalHD). He's one of my favourite YouTubers/Minecrafters, and I thought he fit my mental idea of Aleks just fine. I'm sorry if you don't like him. Or you think I'm lame because I know who he is. I'm not a normal fourteen-year-old-girl. I'm not into a lot of girly things, and I want to play video games. I can't, because my laptop can't really run them, and my family doesn't have any games for Xbox that aren't Kinect games :( Oh well…That's all for now. New chapter soon maybe. **

**Disclaimer Again: I still don't own Harry Potter. **

**~Storm**


	24. Chapter 23

By the time Aleks and Adam finished their story, it was late. Fred guessed it was eleven. Or midnight, maybe. All of the girls had fallen asleep. Luna had fallen asleep first, and Ron pulled her into his lap when he thought no one was looking. Ginny had gotten up, as had Katie, and each of them had sat on the ground, leaning against their fiancés' legs. They had fallen asleep like that, then George and Harry had pulled the girls into their laps. Meanwhile Hermione had curled into her chair, and had fallen asleep like that.

It hadn't been hard to pay attention to the long story Adam and Aleks told. They were great story-tellers, and you could tell by the look in Fred and George's faces, they were coming up with amazing ideas for the shop. When Adam and Aleks finished, they looked around.

"That took longer than I expected. I feel narcissistic now. Kind of." Adam said. Aleks nodded.

"Sorry, guys." Aleks said. The others shook their heads.

"No, it's fine. We actually hadn't planned anything to kill time. We needed a good story. Especially one that outdid Peeves, the Marauders, and Fred and George." Harry said. They all grinned.

"You guys didn't mention anything about the war, though." Ron said suddenly. Adam froze in the motion of bringing his drink to his lips. He set his drink down, and looked over his shoulder. He turned back to the others, and shook his head. Aleks just shrugged. "I hid Muggle-borns in my house. I do live in a castle. That thing is way too big for me anyway. It's empty now that everyone's gone back to their own lives." He said it with a serious face, shrugging. Adam snorted, then started laughing, falling back in his chair. Aleks rolled his eyes.

Aleks looked at his watch. "It's late, guys. Do I have any authority here to say we should probably hit the sack? Don't we have to set up for a wedding that's in two days?" Aleks said. Harry looked at him surprised. "You want to help set up for a wedding?" Harry asked. Aleks nodded.

"If you want my help. I seriously don't have anything else to do. I've been staying with Adam for a while, but that didn't really help the boredom." Aleks said. Harry nodded. "You can help if you'd like. And you do have some authority. Enough to suggest us going to bed." Aleks grinned. Everyone stood up.

Ron and Harry carried their fiancés up to the house. George talked quickly to Fred, then disapparated. Charlie, Fred, Adam, and Aleks all stayed to fold up the chairs, and put them in the shed. Charlie put out the fire. Then he turned to Adam and Aleks. "Are you guys gonna stay here?" Adam didn't respond, but Aleks shrugged. "Do you mind? We can go home if you want." Charlie shook his head. "No, you guys can stay up in my room." the two boys nodded, and they began walking towards the house. Fred watched them, then gathered Hermione into his arms. He balanced her with one arm, and flicked his wand at her chair. It folded itself, then flew into the shed. He grinned, shoved his wand back into his pocket, and carried Hermione up to the house.

Fred set Hermione gently down onto her down, and tucked her under the covers. She could stay in her jeans and t-shirt for one night, he decided. He looked over to the desk, and found a piece of parchment and quill. Quickly, he scribbled her a note, and set it on her nightstand. Then he kissed her forehead, and left her room, shutting the door silently behind him.

Fred turned, and was startled to find Aleks and Adam behind him. They looked at him, confused.

"Holy cow!" he whispered, hoping Hermione wouldn't wake up. "You guys scared me." He said. Aleks grinned. "Sorry. We were wondering where Charlie's room was. He disappeared when we got inside." Fred nodded. "Right," he said, his heart racing from the scare. He nodded. "This way." He began leading them down the hall. "But holy cow you guys scared me. Freakin' just showing up behind me." Aleks looked wholly amused. Adam started chuckling as they walked.

"Shut up." Fred said, before stopping in front of Charlie's door, and pushing it open. Charlie wasn't inside. Aleks and Adam walked in. "I suppose you'll need two more beds." Fred said. Aleks shook his head. "No." Adam nodded. "Yup, we don't need any." He said, turning to smile brightly at Fred. Fred nodded. "Alrighty then." He said, deciding not to question anything. "Charlie'll probably be back in a few moments." He said, then turned to leave the room.

Fred jumped again when he saw Charlie standing behind him. "Holy cow, Charlie!" he cried. Charlie grinned, then started laughing. Adam and Aleks were still in the room, doubled over laughing.

"That wasn't funny, Charlie." Fred said, realizing they'd done that on purpose. "No, I'm pretty sure that was funny." Adam said. Charlie nodded, still laughing. Fred shoved past his brother. "Goodnight, Fred." Charlie called after him.

"Goodnight, Fred! Sleep well!" Aleks called.

"Have good dreams Fred! And watch your back!" Adam called.

Fred shook his head as he went up the stairs, hearing them laugh, trade high-fives, and then Charlie's door shut. He really hoped that was all he heard from them the rest of the night.

Hermione woke up the next morning in her own bed, wearing her clothes from yesterday. She scrunched up her nose, and sat up. The first thing she saw was a note on her nightstand. She picked it up, and read it.

_Hermione, _

_I know we have to prepare for Ginny and Harry's wedding today, but would you like to go on a lunch date with me? Of course you would. Please meet me down at the dock at eleven. You don't have to dress up unless you want to. _

_I love you._

_-Fred_

Hermione smiled at the note, then got up, and began getting for the day.

**Hey y'all. New chapter, yay! I'll probably upload another sometime this week. But since I'm nearing 100 reviews, (woop, woop) would you guys like me to maybe answer a few questions or something? If you guys have a few questions for me or something, I'll answer in an update. Or I could do something else if you want. Suggestions –or questions if you like that- would be appreciated. I won't make you, of course, but I thought it'd be fun for celebrating 100 reviews once I get them. If you all don't want me to, I won't. It's whatever. **

**Anyways, I hope you liked this chapter. I thought it was nice. Expect another soon. **

**:) -Storm **


	25. Chapter 24

Setting up for Ginny and Harry's wedding actually wasn't as bad as everyone thought it would be. It was to be at the Weasley's and they already had everything. It just needed to be set up.

And Adam and Aleks proved to be extremely helpful. Every time you turned around, there they were, together, doing another thing Mrs. Weasley had asked them to. They enjoyed helping, obviously. Aleks had been truthful in saying that he hadn't done much. Neither had Adam, most likely, because they were completely entertained. In fact, it was mostly done by the time lunch came around. Adam and Aleks, surprisingly, were nowhere to be found. Neither was Fred or Hermione. But Ginny said Hermione had gone on a date Fred an hour ago, so no one worried about them. But everyone worried about Adam and Aleks.

"Mum, you worked them to death. They're probably gone and died somewhere." George joked. Mrs. Weasley shook her head. "Charlie," she said, ignoring George, "Eat quickly, then go find them, please." Charlie nodded. He had already devoured half his lunch. He finished quickly, then stood up from the table, and went off in search of Adam and Aleks.

Fred smiled as Hermione ran towards the dock. She looked gorgeous. She had disappeared from wedding set-up earlier, and he was glad she did. She was wearing jean cut-offs, and a red t-shirt that fit her nicely. She had simple gladiator sandals, as well. Her bushy hair had been pulled into a pony-tail. He tried hard to not stare at her too much, but he failed quickly enough. She slowed as she got to him.

"Hello, Fred." She said, smiling. They hadn't seen each other all morning. Mrs. Weasley had Fred out with guys, while Hermione was with Ginny, Katie, and Luna in the house. Fred grinned, and held out his arm. "Care to join me, love." he said. She took his arm, he disapparated away, her holding on tightly.

They appeared beside a shady river. Hermione took in her surroundings. It was absolutely beautiful. The river water was so clear you could see the colorful pebbles that decorated the bottom. If you looked closely enough, you could see small fish darting around. There were full trees on the bank, creating a refreshing coolness to the area. The land on either side of the river was green with perfect grass. Hermione was in complete awe of the natural beauty of the area.

Fred smiled at his fiancé as he finished setting up. He had done as much as he could before bringing her, but time had been cut a little short. There wasn't too much left to do, thankfully, and Hermione had been preoccupied staring at the water. When he was positive he was ready, he stood up, coming up behind her.

"Beautiful, right?" he whispered in her ear. She jumped a little, but then nodded, still looking at the river.

"It's a gorgeous place, Fred. Where'd you find it?" she asked. He ignored her question, wrapping his arms around her.

"I was talking about you, love." he said, kissing her sweetly. She blushed, smiling. He pulled on her hand, leading her toward his set-up.

"C'mon, love." he said. He had set up a picnic blanket in the grass under a willow tree. Even under the leaves, Hermione could hear the trickling of water rolling over the rocks. She smiled. Fred sat down, then pulled her down beside him. "Mum taught us all to cook, so I've got a few things here I know you like." He said, pulling out different plates from the picnic basket. She smiled, and selected one. Smiling, they both began to eat.

While they were talking, Hermione repeated her question.

"How'd you find this place, Fred? It's breath-taking." She asked. Fred shrugged.

"Just kind of, you know, came across it one day. It's pretty special to me now."

"You just came across it?"

"Yes, love."

"So are we close to the Burrow?"

"No."

"We're far from it, then?"

"Very."

"Oh." Hermione thought for a moment. "Will you tell me why it's special to you?" Fred shrugged again.

"Because you're the first person I brought here. And you're special to me." He said simply, flashing her a shy smile before looking back at his plate. Hermione blushed.

After they finished eating, Fred put everything away, while Hermione sat quietly beside him. They hadn't said too much, but just being in each other's presence had been enough for the both of them. But now, Fred seemed to have something on his mind.

"Hermione," Fred started, and she gave him her undivided attention. "Hermione, I don't know a lot about you. A little bit, yes, but not a lot. And I have a feeling you don't know a lot about me." She nodded.

"Yes, Fred, you're right. I don't know much about you. So tell me some of your favourite things." She said, taking him by surprise. He shook his head.

Without asking, he picked her up, and set her in his lap, leaning back against the tree.

"No, Hermione, maybe later, but right now, I want to know about you." She nodded. "Um," she couldn't think of anything important. He smiled at her, and she blushed.

"I'm sorry, I can't think of anything." She said. He shrugged.

"Lemme make it easy for you then." He said, "Tell me your favourite color, your Patronus, the side of the bed you sleep on, your least favourite Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher we had, what you like for breakfast, and whether or not you're a virgin." She looked at him, giving him an 'are you serious' kind of look, and he nodded, encouraging her to answer. Hermione sighed.

"Dark grey-blue. It was an otter but after meeting Charlie, it became a dragon. I sleep on the left. Umbridge –no brainer. I usually have Muggle cereal when I'm by myself. And yes, I am a virgin, thank you for being blunt." She said, blushing a little. Fred grinned.

"That was informative, thank you." He said. "Let's see, what else could you tell me about yourself?" he said, pretending to think.

"Are you ticklish?" he asked, tickling her sides a little. She giggled. "Please don't, Fred." She said. He stopped. "You're ticklish." He said. She turned to him. "I will bite you." She said. He shrugged.

"Go ahead, love. Nothing you do will ever hurt me…. I'm more worried about hurting you, actually." He said. The statement caught her by surprise.

"How would you hurt me?" she asked. He shook his head.

"So many ways, love." After that, he didn't say much on that particular topic. But he did tell her about himself, and she did that same about herself. They knew each other pretty well when she asked him to tell her a story. He grinned, and began telling the first one that came to mind.

It wasn't long before she fell asleep leaning against his chest. Almost immediately after, so did he, his head resting on hers.

When Fred woke up again, the sun had mostly disappeared in the sky. Hermione was still asleep, a soft smile gracing her face. He smiled at it. Everything in his body was telling him to stay put, to watch his beautiful fiancé the rest of the night, but his mind was telling him to get up.

Ginny's wedding was tomorrow, and his mum and Ginny would both kill him if he and Hermione weren't there. Hermione _was_ the maid of honour.

Against his want, he gently shook Hermione.

"Hermione, love, it's late, we better go home. Mum will kill me." He said. She woke slowly. Fred waved his wand, and muttered a spell. The picnic things quickly put themselves up, then disappeared. He stood up, pulling Hermione to her feet after him.

"C'mon, love, I'll answer any questions. You can go back to sleep when we get home." He whispered. She nodded. He thought hard, concentrating for the both of them, then disapparated. They appeared back at the dock. She stumbled a little at landing, but did not seem splinched. He led her up to the house.

When they got up to the Burrow, and inside, they immediately noticed a few things. One, everything was set up for the wedding. Two, the entire living room was buzzing with activity. The others (George, Harry, Ron, Ginny, Luna, Adam, Aleks, Charlie, and Katie) had waited up.

"Merlin, Fred! You could've told us you had Hermione!" Katie exclaimed, jumping up and hitting Fred.

"Ouch, woman! I didn't know we'd be gone so long!" he responded. Katie looked as though she wanted to fight him. Hermione smiled sleepily.

"Okay then, I'm tired. I'm going to bed. All of you should! There's supposed to be a wedding tomorrow, in case you didn't know." She said. She quickly kissed Fred, then went and hugged each of the others. Then she kissed Fred again before going up the stairs, followed immediately by Ginny and Luna. Katie also, after harshly whispering at Fred, went upstairs. The guys obviously had inclination of going to bed, and so Fred joined them on the couches.

They talked about everything they could think of. The guys hadn't had a good 'let's all talk and be friends and not care about hurting anyone's feelings because we all always got along' kind of night in a while. It had been hard to do that with Blaise and Draco. Anyways, they were all very interested to hear more of Aleks and Adam.

"So, Adam, what exactly _did_ you do during the war?" George asked. Adam shook his head, but Aleks hit his best friend.

"No, Adam, you need to tell someone." He said.

"And if Hermione finds out?" Adam asked.

"We'll cross that bridge if we come to it." Aleks said. Adam sighed. "I was openly fighting the Death Eaters. Literally." He said. Charlie seemed the most shocked.

"Are you serious Adam? You could've gotten yourself killed!" He cried. The others looked at him. Adam put a finger to his lips, nodding at the stairs.

"I'm sorry, I'm not familiar with the term 'openly fighting'." George said. Charlie huffed.

"It pretty much means he literally went up to a Death Eater, and fought them. Didn't matter where they were, or who was around. If he saw one, and he thought he could take them, he would. It's incredibly dangerous. If he faltered at all, he would've failed his duel. He's lucky he's alive." Charlie said, turning to look at Adam. Adam immediately turned away.

"Okay, so what aren't you telling us?" Harry asked. Adam shrugged.

"I may have almost gotten killed." He said under his breath. Charlie inhaled quickly.

"You're joking." He said. Adam shook his head. "Nope. Right after the Battle of Hogwarts, I had attacked one of the Death Eaters who was trying to run away. I had him beat, but his buddy or someone came out of the forest. He sent me flying. A healer found me, mostly dead. Not all dead, mostly dead. I was in Mungoes until the end of March, when I was charged off. Aleks has stayed with me since then, to make sure I stay all right.1 I haven't told Hermione. She doesn't even know I was a part of the war. Before leaving her parents, she had asked me to stay in the woodwork, and out of the picture so I didn't get hurt." He said.

"Well, that obviously didn't go as planned." Ron said. Adam looked at each of them.

"You won't tell Hermione, will you guys?" he asked. Fred looked at him, surprised.

"You're not going to tell Hermione?"

"Not if I don't have to. The less she knows, the better. She's been through way too much to know I almost died." Adam said.

That dropped the subject, obviously, and no one tried to bring it up again. Aleks took attention by asking if any of them had ever tried to see what would happen if you put a band of Cornish Pixies in Snape's office.

With that story, and a few others, the guys went to bed. All of them, save Charlie, Fred, and Adam and Aleks, had forgotten mostly about what Adam had told them. It wasn't their problem, really. Charlie, of course, brought it up again once he and his two friends were in privacy.

Fred had no one to talk about it with, so he kept it to himself. He had agreed not to tell Hermione, but what if that's what needed to happen? He did not let the question lose him sleep, anyways. But what if Hermione needed to know that? Seriously?

**Oh my jeez, guys, I made it through the date, and a secret, and all that in one chapter. Next chapter will be a wedding, Ginny and Harry's wedding. I might still slap myself because I meant to upload this chapter before now. So sorry. Anyways, if you guys still have questions, or anything to celebrate 100 reviews, which will be soon, let me. I'm personally really excited for it. But please keep in mind that you don't have to review, it's just greatly appreciated. And shoutout quietly to iLoveRomance2o11. I think she reviews on every chapter. I appreciate that, thank you. And I will answer your question when I have 100 reviews, so soon probably. Bro-fists all around, because you guys are great. :)**

**And if you noticed, I put a 1 beside 'all right' because I learned something about that phrase. If you say 'alright' instead of 'all right' then you are saying it wrong actually, and it is informal and will lower your grade on your English assignments. Just thought you guys would like to know. **

**Anyways, expect the 25****th**** chapter soon. –Storm **


	26. Chapter 25

Fred didn't have any time to ponder anything the next morning. He was awoken around seven in the morning by commotion downstairs. It seemed that the anxiety that Ginny unsurprisingly had was affecting everyone. There was hustle and bustle going about, and he hadn't even left his room yet. He quickly got ready, and laid his tux on his bed, knowing he'd have to come back to it later. Sighing, he left his room.

Hermione saw Fred enter the kitchen, but she had no time more than to wave at him, and offer a sleepy smile, before she was ushered upstairs by Ginny. If Ginny had to get ready to be bride, and Hermione as maid of honour, and Katie and Luna as brides-maids, there was no time to waste apparently.

The morning went by quickly, and seven hours later, people were filling up the yard of the Burrow, being shown to their seats by the Weasley boys, and Adam and Aleks. Ginny and Hermione were looking out the window, watching.

"Hermione, I don't think I can do this." Ginny said quietly. Hermione shook her head.

"That's okay. This is what you've been wanting for years, and now you've got it. Sadly, you can't back out until you're ready. This is law now. But you and Harry love each other, and you'll make it through the first part. And you've both got plenty of friends and family who will support your every decision, except backing out of your wedding day. Your mother will kill you, but no pressure." Hermione said. Ginny looked at her.

"That was beautiful, Mione, have you ever thought of being a philosopher?" Ginny asked. Hermione shook her head.

"I have no idea what you're talking about. Now go, put your dress on." Hermione said.

An hour later, Hermione was waiting for Ginny by the alter. The wedding had started, and the only one they were waiting for was Ginny. And by the cue of the music starting, everyone turned towards the walk.

When Ginny came out escorted by her father, the entire room seemed to gasp. Ginny looked gorgeous. Her dress was a white strapless one that flowed starting at the waist, puffing out slightly. It had a shimmery gold look to it, and there was a scarlet sash tied smoothly around her waist. Her hair was done up in a complicated bun that Hermione had been unable to follow when Luna did it up. There was a feather-y hair piece stuck in, with a scarlet feather, and several gold feathers. You could just barely see her shoes, but Hermione knew they were scarlet flats with a slight heel.

Hermione glanced over at Harry. He was in absolute awe of is lovely fiancé. Hermione was sure he'd be drooling if his mouth wasn't closed. Hermione tried to keep from giggling as Ginny finally got up to the alter, and the long ceremony began.

Fred watched the wedding as one of the groomsmen. He kind of zoned out when talking began, but that was okay, because he got to stare Hermione, in her maid of honour dress.

Her dress went to just above her knees, and it was red, like the one she had worn at Bill and Fleur's wedding, except it had a gold shimmery kind of look to it, similar to the one of Ginny's dress. She looked special, with her hair down. As pretty as Ginny was on her own wedding day, Fred couldn't help but look more at Hermione.

"You may now kiss your bride, Harry."

Ginny smiled as Harry leaned to kiss her. Finally, she was married. She'd have to wait until the reception was over until she had Harry to herself.

But that was okay, she did want to dance.

Fred had had something on his mind since the wedding was over. It had come to him when he was dancing with Hermione, and the song had ended, and Adam had asked her to dance with him.

Adam really was going to keep his almost-death a secret.

Fred could see Hermione on the other side of the dance-floor. She smiled politely, ending her dance with Charlie, and made her way to a table where Adam and Aleks where talking with some buddies that had been a few years under them. She was obviously danced-out. Fred made his decision immediately.

Hermione needed to know.

But Fred did not get his chance to tell her until later. It was at the moment when Fred decided this that Harry and Ginny announced they needed to leave. So everyone said good-byes and things, and Hermione exchanged hugs with Harry and Ginny –two of her best friends- and the two newlyweds left. Fred could see why. It looked as though another storm would be soon, and they'd need to be at their honeymoon destination before it hit.

Oh well.

It didn't seem like too many people were leaving. In fact, Fred was pretty sure the only ones who left then were family members, and a few friends. It wasn't too late, and people still wanted to catch up. And from the look of it, Mrs. Weasley was still serving dinners. It'd probably be a while before she thought it'd be best for everyone to leave.

Fred sighed. Leave it to the Weasleys to turn a wedding into a mini-get-together.

Aleks watched from the corner of his eye as Fred appeared from the crowd of dancers and chatters on the dance-floor, and reached his hand out to Hermione.

"Are you asking her to dance, Fred?" he asked, genuinely confused. Even Neville Longbottom had noticed that Hermione was exhausted. Fred shook his head.

"No, but I'd like to talk with her. An idea I had that I thought she'd like to hear." Fred said. Hermione smiled, and agreed, taking his hand, and letting him lead her away through the tables and to the edge of the tent, and outside into the faded evening night.

Now, Aleks was better at reading girls than boys, but Aleks was a people person, and he was not born yesterday. He nudged Adam.

"Hey, Adam, something tells me he's up to no good." Aleks said, nodding towards where Fred and Hermione had disappeared to. Adam nodded, and stood up. "I'll be back in a moment, guys." He said, before instantly disappearing into the crowd.

"Is that how you two did everything at Hogwarts, Aleks? Apparating everywhere?" one of the guys asked, and Aleks shook his head, beginning to tell another story.

Hermione smiled as she and Fred held hands, walking down to the lake again.

"We end up here a lot, don't we?" she asked. Fred grinned, and shrugged.

"That's alright, it's pretty." She said. Fred smiled.

"You know, Hermione, people keep secrets." He started out. She raised her eyebrows as they sat on the end of the dock, dangling their feet in the water.

"What did you do, Fred?" she asked. He shook his head.

"It's not me this time." He said, "But, I want to know how you think about secrets." He said. She looked at him quizzically.

"Like how?" she asked.

"Well," he said, "Do you ever feel like a secret that has been kept against you is unfair, or was not a very good idea to keep?"

"I dunno. I guess it depends on the secret, and who's keeping it." she said, swishing her legs slowly in the water, watching them.

Out of the corner of his eyes, Fred saw something. Slowly, he focused his vision. Was Adam across the lake? Fred wouldn't be surprised. He changed his mind. He knew Adam could hear him, and he knew Adam wasn't stupid.

Fred wouldn't tell Hermione.

He was going to guilt Adam into telling Hermione.

**How was that, y'all? Oh my gosh, that was hard. I need to work on writing weddings. I've got to write at least one more, I think. I'm sorry if this wasn't as good as you thought it would be. I'll have a little update thing after this, but I wanted to get this out first. **

**Does this even count as a wedding? Please tell me if I failed you guys.**

**Oh well. Brilliance is as brilliance does, even if I've not much of it. –Storm**


	27. Update! 2

**Okay, guys, hi. So, I got 100 reviews! Yay! *cue more confetti* So, I will answer the one question I got.**

**iLoveRomance2o11, in response to your question: I have always been a story-teller, and I've always made up stories. I'd say I actually started writing them down in the third or fourth grade (they were never that good). A lot of my writing I do ends up being some sort of fantasy world or something. And I tend to write repetitively. But yeah, I've always been writing. It just so happens I didn't start writing these things down with actual words until about four or five years ago. I think that my writing has definitely developed since then, and I've been meaning to do a lot more fanfiction. If you and anyone else who reads this has constructive criticism, I'd love to hear it. Thank you for being in the spirit of fun, and asking a question.**

**Um, so my 100****th**** review was someone calling me out for mentioning an iPod. Okay, so I'm sorry, alannalove1990, for deciding that wizards and the wizarding community were cool enough to have iPods before Muggles had iPods. I apologize deeply, but I'm going to keep it in the story. And I'm surprised you paid that much attention to this that you actually picked up on that. A+ to you for knowing what you're talking about. **

**So the wedding. That was difficult to write. I hope you guys liked it :) -Storm**


	28. Update! 3

**Update, Yay! **

**Okay, so, I seriously love Chapter 26. It only took me forever to write it, but I do love it. But, I have a question for all of you who read these updates.**

**If I wrote and uploaded a Pitch Perfect fanfiction, would anyone read it? I probably will, because Pitch Perfect has turned quickly into one of my favourite movies of all time. **

**Since Donald is my favourite Pitch Perfect character, it'll probably be a DonaldxOC, with everyone from Beca's first year of college, even though the story would take place in her second year. Please tell me what you guys think of the idea. **

**And speaking of other fanfictions, are there any other fandoms you guys want me to write for. I'll still finish this one and everything, but I could probably take on a few more.**

**Maybe. Possibly. If you guys want it. You guys are the readers :) **

**Speaking of reading, I was re-reading one of my previous chapters to this story, and I can't remember which one, sorry, but I referenced **_**The Princess Bride**_**.**

**I FRICKIN' REFERENCE **_**THE**_** FRICKIN' **_**PRINCESS BRIDE **_**WITHOUT EVEN FRICKIN' REALIZING IT! DAMN!**

**Okay, so now I've had my outburst, how has everyone's spring break gone? I guess a lot of people already had theirs or hasn't had theirs yet, but I'm on spring break now, so you can go ahead and tell me now how it's gone, or went, or will go. If you want. I really like to be polite and talk-y with readers, even if they don't really care. **

**Shoot, I carry on conversations with myself, I don't know what pushes me to talk to actual people. It's not like my friends understand me sometimes anyway. **

**Derp. Oh well. I cannot do better than that, I guess, because I am my own human being self who can if I so choose to talk to myself I may. -Storm**


	29. Chapter 26

Hermione was confused. What was wrong with Fred? Why was he being so….secret-y about whatever was bugging him? She sighed. Fred looked at her.

"Are you alright, Hermione?" he asked, and she nodded.

"Yeah, I'm alright. Are you alright?" she asked, and he nodded, giving her a strange look. She gave him a quick half-smile, then looked up at the moon, which was partially covered by bluish-gray storm clouds. Fred nodded.

"Yeah, well, it looks like it's going to rain, so let's head back now." He said, standing up abruptly, and pulling her to her feet. It took her a moment to catch her balance, but she didn't think about it. Was it just the bad moonlight, or was Fred looking extremely pale?

She shrugged it off, and followed him back to the house. His step was quick, and she was a little out of breath once there. But she smiled when he turned to her.

"I love you, Hermione," he said, kissing her quickly. Before she could respond, he backed away.

"I really do, love, I need to go. I'll see you later." He said, half-smiling at her. His expression changed as he looked at something over her shoulder. She turned, but saw nothing but trees. When she turned back around, Fred had disappeared into the crowd. She sighed.

"Boys." She said, heading towards Luna and Katie by the desserts table.

She didn't notice Ron standing a few meters away, glaring after her, murmuring to himself.

Katie smiled as Hermione made her way through the crowd to herself and Luna. The maid of honour looked exhausted, and major confused. Katie handed her a cookie as soon as Hermione was close enough to take it.

"Thanks," Hermione said, taking a bite of the cookie. As she chewed, she sighed. It wasn't the 'oh-my-gosh-I-really-love-this-cookie' that was normally exhaled after taking a bite of a cookie. No, it was more of an 'I-really-don't-even-know-what-to-do-about-this-because-I'm-so-confused-and-slightly-upset-now-because-of-it' kind of sigh.

"Hermione, is everything okay?" Katie asked. Hermione shrugged.

"I guess. It's just Fred all of a sudden is very strange."

"That's nothing new, Hermione."

"No, like, I think he's keeping a secret from me. One he thinks I won't like hearing. I'm afraid, kind of, to find out what it is, but I don't want him to keep secrets from me. That's not fair." Hermione explained. Katie nodded, seeming to contemplate the idea.

"You know, Hermione," Luna said dreamily, "Maybe you've just made him nervous. His wedding to you is in two weeks, and maybe Ginny's wedding kind of brought the reality of it up, and hit him in the face with it. He does get to marry you, you realize." Luna finished, a happy smile on her face as she picked up another cookie.

"Damn, these are amazing.

Hermione looked at Luna, looking confused.

"Luna, I am very rarely confused by anything. But I have not the slightest idea what you just said." Hermione said. Luna shrugged. Katie gave Hermione a sympathetic smile.

"It'll be all right, Mione. You know Fred, and I know him even better. He's only doing what he thinks is right, and trying to protect what he loves most. You." Katie said. Hermione gave a half-smile back.

"I think I'm going to bed now. It's been a long day. Do you think Molly will need my help with anything?" she asked. Katie shook her head.

"No, Mione, go on upstairs and to bed. Whatever Molly needs, I'm sure we'll handle it. I'll tell her you're going up, so you don't have to try to explain it. You know Molly." Katie said. Hermione gave her a thankful smile, and nodded. Then Hermione turned, and snuck past Mrs Weasley a few tables over, and Katie saw her disappear into the house.

Hermione was more than exhausted. It had set kind of quickly. Ever since she had last seen Fred, she decided, thinking back to a few minutes before. Maybe the day crashed a little too quickly on her.

She shrugged, leaving the bathroom after changing into pajamas, and de-prettying herself. When she walked over to her desk, the light went out. Even though Hermione immediately reached for her wand, it was yanked out of her grasp, and thrown across the room. She heard it hit the wall, then clatter to the floor.

Before she could react otherwise, a blindfold was put tightly over her eyes. Then a gag was tied tightly around her mouth. Her wrists were jerked together, and bound quickly as well. And then, she felt the pull of apparation, and the thud of her landing hard in some grass, falling to the ground.

Fred tore through the crowd of people still remaining, looking in as many directions as he could. Even though most everyone had been sent home by Molly when lightning had cracked dangerously close to the tent, he couldn't see clearly.

Fred had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach, and it had grown worse when he couldn't find Hermione. He apologized quickly to everyone he stumbled past. Luckily, they all assumed he'd had too much to drink, and didn't bother about him. He spotted Katie and Luna near the desserts table, eating cookies, and laughing at something George had said. He ran over to them, stumbling as he got to them.

"Oh my wizard god, Fred, are you okay?" Katie said as he stood straight. Fred nodded, breathing hard.

"Have you guys seen Hermione? Please tell me you've seen Hermione." He said. Katie nodded quickly, obviously trying too hard to reassure him.

"Yeah, she went up to bed about ten minutes ago. She was exhausted, Fred." She said. Fred nodded, patted her shoulder quickly, and tore off again towards the house.

Fred had made it up the stairs, and had opened Hermione's door when he was jerked off his feet, and held against a wall. After the shock, he was slightly surprised to see Adam holding him about a foot off the ground.

"What did you think you were doing? Out by the lake?" Adam asked, anger flashing flames in his eyes. Fred shook his head.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about, Adam." He said.

"I wasn't born yesterday, Fred. You said you wouldn't tell her!" Adam said.

"She deserves to know!"

"Well, she doesn't deserve the hatred she's going to feel for knowing it. Hatred at me. She doesn't need that sense of betrayal."

"You're lying to her, Adam! And choking me." Fred said. Adam backed away, letting Fred fall to his feet. Fred nodded.

"Thanks." He said, and Adam nodded back.

"I'm not lying, Fred. I-I'm just not telling her everything. I'm not lying. Am I?" he asked. Fred nodded.

"Not telling her everything is the same as lying, Adam. Trust is like glass. Glass is a fragile thing, Adam, and whether you hit it with a crowbar or a mallet, it'll smash into a thousand little pieces. It won't matter in the end what you hit it with, because it's already broken, and you'll need to start over. You can't put tiny glass shards back together." Fred said. Adam nodded.

"So, I need to tell Hermione?"

"It'd be best if you did, Adam. I don't want to have to, but I will if it comes down to it."

"Right." Adam walked over, and peered through Hermione's door, flipping on the light.

"So where is she?" he asked. Fred turned, and hurried over. The room was empty. Adam pushed past Fred, and walked across the room. He bent down, and picked something up.

"Is this Hermione's wand?"


	30. Chapter 27

Fred looked up at Adam, fear zapping through him.

"What do we do?" he asked. Adam shook his head.

"I have not the slightest idea. Let's go tell Aleks and Charlie. This is important." Adam said. Fred nodded, and the two ran back out to the people. Adam immediately found Aleks and Charlie.

"Guys, Hermione's gone." He said quietly but urgently when he got to them. They looked up at him, surprised.

"What?" Aleks asked. Adam repeated himself.

"Hermione is gone. Here's her wand." He said, holding it up. Charlie reacted first, and rushed over to Mr Weasley, who was talking to Mrs Weasley and Kingsley.

"Dad, Hermione's gone." He said. Adam, who had followed behind him, nodded, holding up her wand. Mr Weasley and Kingsley looked at each other, then turned back to the four guys.

"All right, boys, go into the house. Don't let anyone know. We'll be in there in a moment." Mr Weasley said. The four of them nodded, and went back into the house, and into the living room. They sat down, and just looked at each other. Hermione's disappearance had set in quickly. Obviously, it affected Fred the most. He sat, looking pale, and confused, and didn't look at anyone. He just stared at the floor. When his dad and Kingsley walked in, only then did he look up.

"Boys, what happened exactly?" Kingsley asked. Adam explained.

"Fred was looking for Hermione, and I needed to talk to Fred about something, and after talking, we turned to see Hermione, and she wasn't in her room. Her wand was lying by the wall. The room was set up as if she was going to bed." he said. Kingsley and Mr Weasley nodded. After a quick whisper-discussion between the two of them, they turned back to the four.

"One of you need to apparate to her." Kingsley said.

"We don't know where she is, though." Aleks said. Mr Weasley shook his head.

"Okay, yes, but you need to apparate to her. Not to where she is." He said. The four looked at the two Ministry workers.

"Can you do that?" Charlie asked, "Apparate to a person, not to where the person is?" Kingsley nodded.

"Yes. Whoever has the best mental description of a person, better than anyone's, can apparate to the person. It's rarely used anymore, since apparation rates haven't been as easy lately. There is much unstableness across the world because of such an abrupt end to Voldemort's reign. The end of the war with a battle was not that great, and apparation has quickly become dangerous. The Ministry hasn't told anyone, because the magic cannot go extinct because of fear. With Voldemort's name a fear, apparating to a person and not a place has been mostly wiped out." He said. Adam shook his head.

"So how is one of us supposed to do it?" he asked. Mr Weasley smiled.

"Whoever knows her best will be able to. Just picture Hermione, and you'll get to her. Just one of you needs to. Whoever knows her best." he said, repeating himself. Aleks and Charlie both looked at Adam, while Adam looked at Fred. Fred looked back at him.

"Boys?" Mr Weasley said. Adam shook his head.

"Fred should do it." he said. Kingsley gave Adam a confused look.

"Adam, why not you? You have known Hermione longer than anyone here, and you're closer to her. I'm sure you know her better than Fred." He said. Adam shook his head.

"Fred should do it." he repeated. Fred nodded.

"Okay. But I don't think I can go alone. If she's in trouble, I won't be much of an army by myself." He said. Kingsley and Mr Weasley thought for a moment. Aleks rolled his eyes.

"Both of you go. If there is a lot of trouble, one of you come back quick, get us, and get back. If there isn't trouble, then just get her home." He said.

Hermione wasn't sure what to do. She couldn't move, couldn't see, couldn't talk. But nothing was happening. Thankfully, she could still hear. Someone –her kidnapper she assumed- was murmuring to himself, and making a decent amount of racket, doing whatever he was doing. Hermione knew it was a he. He was too strong to be a girl, and his murmuring was too deep to be an evil-mastermind-insane girl.

It wasn't too long before the he finished whatever he was doing, and spoke directly to her.

"Wow, Granger, letting yourself get caught and knocked out? Your brain capacity has gone down since Hogwarts." It said. She recognized the voice, but could not think of who it belonged to before she was knocked with a jolt, and fell unconscious.

Fred and Adam landed at the same time, about fourteen feet away from each other. They were in a field, it looked in the dark. Nearby was a sink in the ground. Adam and Fred looked at each other, and walked towards it, wands out. Adam had Hermione's wand in his back pocket.

Once at the sink, they looked down. It was dark.

"I can't see anything, can you?" Fred asked. Adam shook his head.

"Not a foot down. Here, light your wand." Adam said.

"Lumos. Now what? We still can't see." He said. Adam ignored him.

"Wingardium Leviosa." Fred's wand rose in the air, and Adam controlled it down the sink. Fred's wand illuminated the dirt hole as it went down. It was stopped short by hitting the bottom. Adam raised it back up, snatching it from the air. He handed it to Fred.

"Less than two meters, I say we jump down." He said. Before Fred could say anything else, Adam had disappeared into the sink, his wand now alight as well. He looked up expectantly at Fred.

"Come on. There's a tunnel down here." He said. Fred nodded, and followed Adam into the sink. Adam walked ahead of Fred, which Fred appreciated. He wasn't scared, really, but he was feeling a mix of worry and confusion.

"Where's your Gryffindor courage, Fred?" Adam asked. The disruption of the silence pulled Fred from his thoughts.

"What?" he asked. Adam glanced at him.

"I can hear your teeth chattering. And you aren't cold." He said. Fred blushed a little.

"Sorry. I'm just worried." He said. Adam nodded. "Me too, Fred, me too. No time to worry, though. That's for later. Maybe if we die. Then you can worry. For now, we can find Hermione." Adam said.

Fred nodded, staying close to Adam as they got deeper into the tunnel. After a while, Adam stopped.

"Fred, do you hear that?" he asked. Fred stopped, and listened.

"No, Adam, I don't. What do you hear?" he asked. Adam nodded.

"Thought I heard a whimper." He said. Fred looking at him.

"You think its Hermione?" he asked. Adam shrugged.

"Maybe. Does Hermione ever whimper? She's not usually one for pathetic sounds." He said. Fred nodded. The two continued walking.

"I think we're going up again. Watch your step." Adam said. Fred nodded.

It wasn't a big 'up' they had, it was just a little steep. When they got up, they were relatively surprised at what they found.

**So, how was Chapter 27? Anyone like it? It's a little short compared to some of the others. I try to get at least 1000 words in each chapter, hopefully more. Sometimes, it just doesn't work out though. I'll try and get Chapter 28 up soon. So, since no one really told me anything about what they thought of me uploading a Pitch Perfect (DonaldxOC) fanfiction, I'll wait a little bit, ask a few friends, see if I'm really bad at writing, and if I'm not, you guys will probably get to see that soon. I'm working on a second DonaldxOC as well, so if you guys really want to see them, tell me. If you don't, tell me that, too. I'll still probably post them. I really like them. **

**I realized last Chapter, I didn't mention Easter at all. I'm sorry. Happy belated Easter to all my Easter-celebrating readers. **

**Also, when I say 'sink' in this chapter, I don't mean a sink like a drain, I mean like a hole in the ground. Sink just sounded better, and I have said sink before instead of hole. If it really bugs any of you, then I'll try it. Sink just sounds better. Welp, happy reading, and expect new Chapter soon. -Storm**


	31. Chapter 28

Hermione hadn't really been conscious or unconscious, but she had recognized when a weight was knocked off her. She could only slightly hear a scuffle going on just to the left of her. It wasn't seconds later when someone took off her blindfold and gag, and began to untie her wrists. Fred was kneeling beside her, working at the knots. She looked around. Two people were fighting next to them.

Adam and -wait was that Ron? Hermione turned back to Fred.

"Love, are you alright?" he asked. Hermione shrugged. She could feel pain, she thought, but she couldn't really pinpoint it.

"I hurt. I think." She said. Fred nodded. He seemed to be having difficulties with the ropes.

"Are you a wizard or not?" Hermione asked. Fred nodded, and pulled out his wand. He murmured a spell, and the ropes were cut. Hermione rubbed her wrists. Fred gasped suddenly.

"Mione, your stomach." He said. Hermione looked. Her shirt had been torn up the front, exposing her entire chest and stomach, and several gashes were scattered on her skin.

"That explains a lot." She said. Fred ignored her, and pointed his wand at one of the cuts, and murmured a healing charm. Hermione yelped. The spell hadn't worked; it had made the pain much worse.

"Sorry, love." Fred said. Hermione nodded. The only thing Fred could do was conjure up a rag, and gently dab at the blood. Hermione bit her lip to keep from crying out. Suddenly, there was a pop next to them. Fred jumped.

"Dammit! He's disapparated!" Adam said, hitting the ground. He crawled over to Hermione then.

"What happened, sweetheart?" he asked. She shook her head.

"I don't know." She said. Adam nodded.

"That's a first." He said, pulling his t-shirt off. He gently pulled off Hermione's torn shirt, and then helped her put his on. Hermione half-smiled.

"What was the point of that? You've already seen all this, and Fred will eventually." Hermione said. Adam shrugged.

"Once you're at the Burrow, you'll appreciate it probably." Adam said. She nodded, while Fred looked at them.

"How have you seen that?" he asked. Adam shook his head.

"You have no idea how many times I've accidently walked in on her while she was getting dressed. That's how I learned to knock before entering most rooms, is it was getting embarrassing to be constantly walking in on her getting dressed." Adam said. Hermione grinned.

"Him and Aleks both. At least once a week they must've done it when I was with them for the longest time." She said, stifling laughter. Fred grinned, clearly entertained as Adam blushed some.

"We didn't do it on purpose." He said, "Look, Fred, you take her back to the Burrow. Get Molly to heal her. Tell Kingsley and Arthur I'll be there in a moment."

"What are you going to do?" Hermione asked as Fred gently picked her up. The gashes had caused a decent amount of blood loss, and there was no way she'd be able to stand on her own. Adam smiled at her.

"I'm going to look around some. So I can come back here later if need be. Fred, be sure to tell Arthur and Kingsley that it was Ron. And he was under the Imperius curse." Adam said. Fred nodded, then disapparated, holding Hermione. The two appeared with a pop in the Burrow den.

Fred gently lay his fiancé on the couch. It seemed that everyone had left the wedding reception, and so anyone who was staying -meaning the remaining Weasley children and a few others- was crowded into the den around the unlit fire. Mrs Weasley, Mr Weasley, and Kingsley were standing in the doorway. Mrs Weasley immediately ran over to Hermione.

"Mione!" Charlie and Aleks exclaimed simultaneously, rushing over to her as well, followed by the others.

"Dad," Fred said, turning to look at the two Ministry workers when they walked over behind him.

"Dad, it was Ron. Ron was Imperiused, and he attacked Hermione. He disapparated before Adam could get a good hold on him. They had a pretty good scuffle before, though." Fred said. Mr Weasley and Kingsley nodded.

"Molly, we'll be at the Ministry." Mr Weasley said, then they flooed away. Mrs Weasley sighed.

"Kids, back up, give me some space. I need to get a good look at these cuts." She said, and they all backed up a few steps, save Fred, who sat on the couch beside Hermione, and Charlie and Aleks who moved to stand behind it. They all waited noiselessly for Mrs Weasley's conclusion.

"These cuts are cursed. They'll have to heal on their own. No magic will do it." Mrs Weasley said, "Luckily, they're not poisoned or anything else." Hermione nodded.

"May I go to bed, though? Since we can't do anything?" she asked. Mrs Weasley sighed again, and nodded.

"I suppose so. If you feel any pain during the night, send your patronus for me. If you can avoid moving or touching them too much, it'd help them heal." Mrs Weasley said. Hermione nodded. Before Fred could pick her up and carry her upstairs, there was another pop into the room. Adam appeared.

He had a black eye, and his lip was busted.

"I found Ron. He was hiding close to where we'd been. I took him to the Ministry. You know, after he decided to fight me again. He's not a good fighter." Adam said, "But it's alright Molly, he's not hurt. They're taking the Imperius off him now." Mrs Weasley nodded, internally thankful.

The others all breathed sighs of relief. Everything was going to be alright.

"Should we owl Harry and Ginny?" Katie asked, "They weren't here, and maybe they'd like to know about this. Mione's their best friend." Hermione shook her head.

"We'll owl them tomorrow after lunch. They won't get the owl until the day after tomorrow, so they'll at least have a bit of a honeymoon without worries. They may or may not worry if we tell them." she said. The others nodded. Fred picked her up, and headed towards the stairs.

He carefully carried her up the stairs, and to her room. He went to set her down on the bed, but she shook her head.

"I don't want to sleep alone tonight, Fred." She said, "Something in me doesn't like the idea." She looked innocently at him. Fred smiled at her.

"Love, if you're afraid, you can say it. I'll tell the others that I'll be up here with you tonight. I'll explain it to Mum, make them understand. I'm sure they will. And then I'll be right back." He said. Hermione smiled sleepily, and he set her gently on the bed. He tucked her tenderly, being cautious of hurting her stomach, then kissed her forehead before leaving the room.

He was able to quickly explain to the others what Hermione had requested. Luckily, they understood, though the door was to stay open, and Adam, Charlie, and Aleks would be checking on the two throughout the night. Fred accepted the terms, and quickly went to his and George's room. He changed into pajamas, then returned to Hermione's room.

She was already half-asleep, but smiled when he crawled under the blanket with her, and pulled her into his arms.

"I love you, Hermione Granger." He whispered to her.

"I love you too, Fred Weasley." She whispered back, cuddling into his chest. In minutes, they were both asleep.

**This is also kind of a short chapter, but I've had a bit of writer's block on this story recently. Next chapter should, theoretically, be longer. But other than that, I'll be uploading a **_**Pitch Perfect **_**DonaldxOC story after this one. If you like that kind of thing, you could check it out. I don't mind. I hope y'all enjoyed this chapter. –Storm**

**PS: I swear, Ron isn't going to be our bad guy here. It just kind of seems like it. But he's not. I try not to hate on him.**


	32. Chapter 29

**Hey, y'all, so okay. Writer's block is starting to go away, which is good. Also, we're getting rather close to the end of this story. It'll probably end not too long after Fred and Hermione's wedding, I think. I don't know exactly how I'll end it. I guess it just depends on whether er not I make it part of a multi-story little series thing, or if it's completely done when I end it. I dunno. **

**Also, I have recently uploaded a **_**Pitch Perfect**_** fanfiction, and also a **_**Now You See Me**_** fanfiction. With this chapter will go another chapter to the **_**Now You See Me**_** and a second **_**Pitch Perfect**_** one, so if you like those kind of things you're welcome to check it out. **

**Well, go on, read the chapter! -Storm **

There was a thump in the night. Fred swore up and down while crossing his heart the next morning he'd heard something in the house during the night. No one else had heard it though.

"I think Fred is so worried about Mione that he's imagining things." Aleks said at lunch. The Weasley children, save Ginny and Bill, and Ron of course, and Hermione, Aleks, and Adam, as well as Katie and Luna had decided to eat out on the dock. Anything to get them out of the stuffy Burrow. They'd spent the morning taking down the wedding things, and storing everything in the den, where it'd be easily accessible in the next few weeks for Fred and Hermione's wedding.

Hermione's stomach still had pretty painful looking injuries on it, but Aleks and Charlie had travelled into Muggle London, and picked up a small healing thing. Their logic was that if wizard healing didn't work, maybe Muggle healing would. And it seemed to be. Hermione could walk around just fine, and only did she show signs of pain when she bent over, or touched the cuts directly.

Currently, she was laying on the dock, resting her head against Fred's leg.

"Fred, I didn't hear anything last night, and you were right next to me. I highly doubt there was anything." She said. Fred nodded, and sighed.

"You're probably right." he agreed.

"But who do you think Imperiused Ron?" Luna asked. They all shrugged.

"Kingsley said he would be working with Ron today to see if Ron knows." Aleks said. For a few minutes, there was silence, then Hermione spoke.

"Adam?" she asked. Adam had been looking at the cloudless sky, deep in thought. But when Hermione said his name, he seemed to snap out of his thoughts, and turned to look at her.

"Adam," Hermione said, "You've been awfully quiet today. What's wrong?" Adam shook his head, looking back at the sky.

"Nothing." He said.

"Adam?" Hermione asked again. He didn't respond. She asked his name several more times before Adam sighed, and sat up.

"Yes, sweetheart, can I help you?" he asked.

"What are you thinking about?" Hermione asked. The others watched as Adam stood up, and turned his back to the group.

"Nothing, sweetheart. I'm alright." Adam said, though it was now painfully obvious that something was bothering him. Hermione pushed herself to her feet, biting her tongue when she accidently pulled on one of the cuts. She walked over to Adam.

"Adam?" she asked again, going to stand in front of him. He turned away from her again.

"Hermione," he snapped, "I'm fine." The others were now shocked, including Aleks. Adam had never -at least to their knowledge- called Hermione much but ''sweetheart'' or ''Mione''. At least not to her face, as he had called her ''Hermione'' to the others before. Just not to her face. And especially in never such an angry tone. Neither Aleks nor Charlie had ever heard that tone of voice from Adam. Hermione hadn't heard it before either, it seemed, but she remained calm, while the others exchanged looks of astonishment.

"Adam, now don't you lie to me. Something is obviously bothering you." Hermione said.

"What gave it away?" Adam asked. His voice hadn't loss the anger, but it seemed a little softer, like he realized his wrong.

"When was the last time you talked to me and actually called me Hermione?" she asked. Adam huffed.

"Look, sweetheart, I'm just miffed. Is that illegal?" He asked. Hermione shook her head.

"No, of course not. But if you're this mad, then I want to know why. You _are_ one of the most important people in the world to me, Adam." Hermione said. Adam sighed.

"Hermione, look, in case you haven't noticed, someone in the wizarding world wants to hurt you."

"Doesn't someone always? There are Death Eaters still out there, Adam, they're not going to just disappear because Voldemort did!"

"Hermione, someone put Ron under the Imperius Curse so that he could hurt you, or so that he could get you to a place where they could hurt you. They did hurt you!"

"Adam, look, I'm fine. I'm healing up just nicely. And they may have been successful once, but that doesn't mean they'll be successful again."

"But it doesn't mean they'll be unsuccessful!"

"Adam, why are you worrying about me so much?"

"Same reason you worry about me! You mean the world to me, Hermione. Not like a lover or anything, but you are the only family I ever had growing up. My parents didn't care about me. You did. You were seven years younger than me, and you cared about me as if you were my twin. You still are seven years younger than me, and you could be my twin sometimes. I can't lose you. I wouldn't have anything after that." Adam explained. The anger was gone, but something sad was in his voice.

"You'd have Aleks." Hermione pointed out. Aleks shook his head.

"No, Hermione, it wouldn't be the same." Aleks said. Adam finally turned back to Hermione. He looked as though he was trying not to cry.

"Hermione, I can't lose you," Adam repeated, "You are literally all I have that means anything. I have other friends, yes, but in the end, you're going to be the only one that matters."

"Adam, you just need to believe that I can take care of myself, and that I'll be alright."

"I do believe that." Adam said, then suddenly his anger was back, "But someone is out there trying to hurt you."

"Adam, I know, you just said that. I was listening."

"Hermione, you aren't listening to me."

"I am. You said that-"

"I know what I said! Hermione, someone is trying to hurt you."

"Okay, yes, please explain, then, if I'm not listening."

"Kingsley told me about this last night. They're not trying to hurt you to hurt you."

"What?"

"They're trying to hurt you, to hurt me." Adam said. Hermione froze.

"What?" she repeated.

"Whoever is out there trying to hurt you, they're not doing it to hurt you. They're trying to hurt me."

"How do you know that?"

"Kingsley explained it last night while I was at the Ministry. Ron, before being Imperiused, heard these people who are behind all this. They hadn't said much, but what they did say was that they hoped that I fell into their trap."

"What's their trap?"

"That I would leave to go find them. Then they'd capture me, and that's it. I'm all they want."

"But you won't leave, so their trap is void." Hermione said. Adam stomped his foot.

"Hermione!" he said loudly.

"What, Adam, what?"

"I'm putting you in danger, Hermione!"

"So what?"

"What if you get hurt worse than this? Then what do I do?"

"Why are you assuming that I'm going to get hurt?"

"Dammit, Hermione! You're not listening! These people who want me will do anything and everything in their power to get me. Right now, all their power is to hurt you. They're not stupid. They know exactly what would happen if you were hurt drastically."

"Adam, why do they want you? What did you do?"

"It doesn't matter. What matters is you are bait."

"And?"

"Hermione! For Merlin's sake, you aren't listening!"

"I am, Adam. You're not listening to me! I'm fine. Nothing is going to happen to me." Hermione exclaimed. The others, who'd been watching the argument go back and forth, said nothing. But what happened next was sudden.

Hermione froze up again, after coming unfroze earlier during the argument. Her eyes seemed to stare suddenly at something behind Adam. He turned to look over his shoulder, and when he did, Hermione's knees buckles, and she fell. Aleks shot up instantly, and caught her before she hit the ground. Adam turned back around, confused. When he saw Hermione, he ran over, as did the others.

"Hermione?" Adam asked. She blinked a few times, looking dazed.

"Get a glass of water." Adam said. Fred conjured up a glass, and filled it with water, then handed it to Adam. Aleks helped Hermione sit up, and Adam held the glass for her. She took it, and drank about half of the water. Then she set the glass down in the grass. After a moment, she nodded.

"I'm okay. I'm all good." She said. The others felt relief, while Adam felt anger at himself. He stood up, stepping away from the group. He had an exceptional tempter, but once he was mad, he was mad. Adam knew he would need a moment or two. And Hermione knew that too, but that didn't stop her.

"Adam?" Hermione asked. Aleks helped the bookworm to her feet, to which she nodded her thanks.

"Adam," Hermione repeated, "You don't think that was your fault, do you?"

"I know it was my fault."

"Of course it wasn't. I was dizzy for a moment; that happens. People get dizzy." Hermione said. Adam huffed.

"Hermione, I'm putting you in danger!" Adam shouted. Hermione took a step towards Adam.

"Adam, you're the only person saying that. Why are you getting so angry?" Hermione asked. Adam looked at her.

"Angry? I'M IN A RAGE! THIS IS THE MADDEST I'VE EVER BEEN!" Adam shouted, "I'm putting you in danger, Hermione!" Adam took a step to Hermione.

"Hermione, you're getting hurt because of me." Adam's voice had softened drastically, and he bit his lip, sitting –well more like collapsing- on the ground, he turned back away from the group. Hermione went over and sat in front of him.

"Adam, if I was getting hurt because of you, I would've told you. You can't ever do anything that would hurt me." Hermione said. Adam shook his head, and looked at her. Though the others couldn't see it, they knew he was crying.

"I already have, sweetheart. During the war. I was openly fighting. I was almost killed. I was in Mungoes up until April. The day you saw me in April -you remember that? They'd let me out that morning. That's why I looked so beat-up. I've already hurt you, sweetheart. I'm just making it worse." Adam said. Hermione froze again. She shook her head.

"Openly fighting? Adam, why would you do that? You were almost killed."

"Because I was tired of being afraid of Voldemort. All the pent-up anger I had from being the underdog, and the worry of you just leaving, and anxiety of not knowing what was going to happen to you. It all mixed up, and I couldn't do nothing. I had to fight. I didn't think it would kill me."

"You were at the Battle of Hogwarts, weren't you?" Hermione asked, and Adam nodded, wiping tears from his eyes with the bottom of his palm. Hermione sighed.

"Adam, I don't even know what to do with you." She said, smiling slightly. Adam shrugged, trying to return the smile.

"There's not much to do. I'm worse than Peeves, of course nothing can be done." He responded. She grinned.

"Of course, how could I have been so silly?" she asked. Adam grinned, and pulled Hermione into a hug.


End file.
